Teachers to receive arrears payment by Sept 30

Education Minister Hazel Manning, along with a team of senior officials have been meeting all of last week with the stakeholders in Education.

On Friday, the Minister and her team met with the Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers’ Association (TTUTA) to continue the dialogue on the various sectors in their effort to modernise and renew the education system in TT. Among the issues discussed at that meeting was the payment of arrears to teachers for the period 1987 — 1995, and TTUTA President Trevor Oliver yesterday revealed that it had been agreed that teachers would receive this payment by September 30. Other issues include increased security in approximately 83 primary schools, as well as additional security in a number of secondary schools. Oliver said TTUTA would continue to meet with the Education Ministry on a regular basis.

In other meetings, Manning met on Monday with the Denomina-tional School Boards; on Tuesday with members of the Association of Principals of Public Secondary Schools and on Wednesday with the National Primary Schools’ Principal Association. Issues being discussed include the introduction by September, 2003 of :-
* The Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) - to be introduced into secondary schools on a phased basis, and will eventually replace the Cambridge General Certificate of Education. CAPE will satisfy qualifications for entry into, and advanced standing at regional and extra-regional universities and generally certify levels of performance in professional courses.
* The launch of a Textbook Rental Programme — textbook rentals in specific subject areas will be introduced in September as part of the Teaching and Learning strategies subcomponent of the Quality Improvement component of the Secondary Education Modernisation Programme.
* Progress on the $2 billion School Construction Programme — the ministry has received financial approval for $378 million and works are in progress on the 2003 — 2006 school construction programme. The projects include the security fencing and equipment of 33 secondary schools, including the upgrade of Corinth and Valsayn Teachers’ Colleges.
* The Introduction of Local School Boards at government secondary schools — local school boards will assist in the development of a Strategic Plan for schools and assist in the development and implementation of improvement plans.
* Modifications of entrance and recruitment requirements for students in possession of Grades 1,11 and 111 of CXC — all government recruiting and training institutions that previously accepted Grades 1 and 11, in the old CXC grading scheme as entry requirements will now accept grades 1, 11 and 111 in the new CXC grading scheme.
* Introduction of a Modernised School Curriculum — the philosophical foundation of the modernised school curriculum is being defined, the six essential learning outcomes explained and the subject areas outlined. These include:
  1. Aesthetic Expression — the arts represent an important facet of students development and they should respond positively to its various forms.
  2. Citizenship — in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment, students need to have a clear understanding of the contribution they need to make to social, cultural, economic and     environmental development in the local and global context.
  3. Communication — through more effective communication, students can use their bodies, language, tools, symbols and media to demonstrate deeper understandings of synergies inherent in the exchange of ideas and information.
  4. Personal Development — students should continually enlarge their knowledge base, as well as expand their horizons and challenge themselves in the pursuit of healthy and productive life.
  5. Problem Solving — students need to apply problem-solving strategies to situations they encounter and develop critical thinking and inquiry skills with which they can process information to solve the problems they encounter.
  6. Technological Competence — technological literacy, students should be able to understand and use various technologies and an understanding of the role of technology in their lives, society and the world at large. 
The modernised curriculum will see greater emphasis in the subject areas of Language Arts, General Science, Spanish, Social Studies, Mathematics, Physical Education, Technology Education and the Visual and Performing Arts.
Other issues which were also discussed included:-
* Progress in the ministry’s Restructuring and Decentralisation efforts;
* Modifications to the School Curriculum;
* Deshifting and Conversion of Junior Secondary Schools;
* Modifications to the School Curriculum;
* Professional Development of teachers and employees in the ministry of education.
Among those on the Ministerial team are Permanent Secretaries Thecla Reyes and Angella Jack; Deputy PS Dr Janet Stanley-Marcano; Chief Education Officer Paula Daniel; Kathleen Thomas; Inskip Babb; Jennifer Hussain; and Maurice Chin Aleong, Programme Coordinator of the Secondary Education Modernisation Programme.