Teaching teachers to handle violence

Forming part of the Education Ministry’s effort to reduce violence and indiscipline in schools, over 300 secondary school teachers have been trained in various techniques to improve classroom management. The workshops which were titled “Train the Trainer,” were sponsored by Joan Bishop’s Creative Parenting for the New Era (CPNE), and formed part of Project Peace, an initiative of the School Intervention Strategies Unit (SISU) of the Ministry. Workshops held throughout the country were aimed at preventing delinquent and disruptive students from “taking over the classroom from the teacher,” and were co-funded by the Fernandez Trust.

Facilitators at some of the workshops included Dr Dianne Douglas who spoke on “Creative Strategies for Making a Difference in the Classroom;” Rowena Kalloo on “Managing the Classroom;” and Ramona Khan on “Effective Instruction.” The final of the six workshops which saw parents, teachers and students participating was held at the bpTT Complex, on April 23 and 24. Testimonials collected from teachers around the country who participated in the exercise reflected only positive feedback. Krishna Soogrim Singh, a teacher at the Las Lomas Government School volunteered that the title of one workshop — “Fix Me First,” was appropriate as it helped him to rediscover himself, in addition to providing tools to help others such as problem solving skill and programme planning.

“Every participant is now in a position to plan the remainder of his/her life with amazing clarity and to use the power of unconditional love in making use of tools and techniques presented at the workshops to assist other parents with the growth and development of their children,” claimed Phillip Pierre, of Anstey Memorial Girls EC School, San Fernando. Yet another participant, Rick Maharaj commended SISU coordinator, Dr Michael Alleyne, for his foresight in arranging such a workshop, and went on to urge all employers, as well as social and cultural organisations to seek this information for themselves as it will help to create an emotionally stable workforce.

One of the testimonials supplied to Newsday came from a student at the Tranquillity Government Secondary School, who claimed to have been “criticised by society both verbally and mentally.” Orissa Joseph laid the blame squarely at the feet of the media, as she said “They exaggerate their stories and don’t stop to think about the damages being done to teachers and more importantly the students.” She accused some parents of not taking time to understand teenagers, adding “But then again, parents are getting younger and younger from 12- 25, as children are having children.” She credited the workshop with having introduced useful information which can help uplift persons, concluding with the hope that the media would “help push them to the top.”