Hazel promises more meals and new schools

CONSTRUCTION of 15 new primary schools, launch of a reading programme and expansion of the school feeding programme were identified as “priority areas” by the Education Minister Hazel Manning for this new school year. Manning outlined the initiatives yesterday in her back to school message to teachers, parents and students. She said last year the Ministry “met the challenge of preparing the nation’s children and teachers to contribute more effectively to the modernising of the education system.” The Minister said this year, 2004-2005, they were moving to “ensure quality as a foundation as we lead the modernisation and renewal of the system of education.” She said the challenge in the new academic year is “quality improvement throughout the system.”

The Minister promised to “soon present our Strategic Quality Plan, as we move to deal more effectively with the external factors impacting on our students’ education.” She identified several of the Ministry’s priorities for the new year, including the launch of a reading programme in primary and secondary schools, which in the initial stage will include provision of  reading specialists at 50 schools. The Ministry’s construction programme will be continued, with the building of “no less than 15 primary schools”, and Manning promised that the school feeding programme will be expanded to include 35,000 breakfasts and 98,000 lunches.

Manning said deshifting of junior secondary schools  and conversion of senior comprehensives to single shift schools will continue, seven dilapidated primary schools will be replaced and more than 100 others are to be refurbished. The Ministry will also be seeking to establish a policy of inclusion for students with special needs and to introduce 26 local school boards at secondary schools. The minister said training for the Boards is continuing. Other initiatives are strengthening of the Continuous Assessment Process (CAP), provision of infrastructure to facilitate delivery of Information and Communication Technology and Technology Studies and construction of Early Childhood Care Education (ECCE) Centres. Manning said designs for 40 centres have already been completed and construction will begin soon.

She also said decentralisation of the Ministry’s operations had become reality with the newly acquired District Offices for St Patrick and Victoria at Sutton Street, San Fernando. The system of decentralisation will be expanded to other educational districts. Regarding the Ministry’s achievements in the last year, Manning said a revised curriculum in eight core subjects was introduced at the secondary level, the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) began with 771 students at 20 secondary schools writing the exams and the Ministry provided $1,000 book grants to 50,000 students in Forms Four and Lower Six, as well as text book rentals to 190,321 students at a cost of $25 million. The Ministry also established a Student Support Services Division, a Teacher Professional Development Unit and a National Curriculum Council.