JIS: As the Government pursues partnerships to fund tertiary education, a suggestion for the utilisation of social impact bonds in this undertaking is being supported by members of the private sector.

 

Social impact bonds, which are largely private-sector-driven, were recently proposed in the Upper House by Government Senator Don Wehby.

 

He was responding to a suggestion from Opposition Senator, Wentworth Skeffery, that the Government identify additional options to finance higher education.

 

Therapedic Caribbean Company Limited Director, Aswad Morgan, tells JIS News that he supports the proposal, particularly in light of Jamaica’s small size and financial constraints

 

“The concept has been adopted in a few countries for (some) of these same reasons and has proven to be a success. The private sector’s involvement will help with the big changes that are needed, and they will be able to get some return from it if successful. The private sector will ensure it will be a success,” he adds.

 

Chief Executive Officer and Founder of the online learning portal, EduFocal, Gordon Swaby, also endorses the proposal, noting that if the concept is properly administered it could do well.

 

He, however, emphasises the need for more details on how it will be formulated to enable persons to better grasp the concept.

 

“Generally, any idea that improves access to tertiary education, I fully support. But I would want to see more specifics of what that might look like,” Mr. Swaby states.

 

In his presentation to the Upper House, Senator Wehby explained that a social impact bond is an innovative and emerging financial instrument that leverages private investment to support high-impact social programmes such as funding tertiary education.

 

It enables private investors to provide loan financing to cover the costs associated with programmes over their duration, with a Project Manager overseeing the daily operations.

 

Based on the programmes’ outcomes, investors receive returns from the Government which are allocated through the Project Manager.

 

Senator Wehby noted that this type of endeavour, though relatively new, is a growing investment vehicle in more than 15 countries.

 

These include the United Kingdom, United States and Israel, where the resources generated are primarily channelled into funding tertiary education.

 

Israel’s use of social impact bonds continues to gain traction. The country uses it to assist in stemming the prevalence with which tertiary students drop out of school and are unable to complete their education.

 

“Based on research, this kind of funding vehicle would be suitable for training programmes targeting students who are at risk of becoming unattached youth, because they can’t afford to study at the tertiary level,” Senator Wehby noted.

 

He contended that the potential savings that would be generated by virtue of not having to implement social-intervention initiatives for unattached youths could be used to repay investors if the training programme is successful and the students gain employment.

 

Through partnerships, the country is utilising the bonds to fund and implement an intervention programme across several institutions to alleviate this crucial social problem.

 

CAPTION: Therapedic Caribbean Company Limited Director, Aswad Morgan

JIS:  Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, is encouraging high-school and tertiary students to write a plan for their goals, to expand their horizons and to believe in themselves.

 

Delivering the keynote address at a career symposium for the Career Advancement Programme (CAP) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) students at St. Elizabeth Technical High School in Santa Cruz, St. Elizabeth, on April 26, the State Minister told them that because the world is changing so fast, gone are the days when all bright students automatically go into law and medicine, as these are no longer the highest paying professions.

 

He urged the students to use the Internet to do the necessary research to find out the top-paying professions today.

 

“Some professions that existed five years ago are no longer around… . You have to expand your horizons,” the State Minister urged.

 

Mr. Green told the students that, many times, it was the lack of self-belief that held people back, reminding them that all people were born to be great.

 

“You will have difficulties and setbacks, but those should not stop you,” he said.

 

The State Minister said that many persons are not walking around holding up their heads or being confident.

 

“You make the first impression by how you carry yourself, making eye contact and behaving like you know much more than you know… , That sets you apart from others,” he argued.

 

The students asked Mr. Green several questions, such as his most difficult challenges as a politician, why he went into politics and how politics has affected his life.

 

The symposium was attended by students from Maggoty High, Hampton School, St. Elizabeth Technical High, Bog Walk High, Maud McLeod High, Munro College, Black River High, Christiana High, Portmore Community College, EXED Community College, Aberdeen High and others.

 

CAPTION: State Minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green (right), listens to a question from one of the students who attended the CAP and CAPE symposium, held at St. Elizabeth Technical High School in Santa Cruz, St. Elizabeth, on April 26.

JIS: The Third International Conference on Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in the Caribbean will be held from May 10 to 12 at the Hilton Rose Hall Resort and Spa in Montego Bay, St. James.

 

The conference, themed ‘TVET for Sustainable Regional Development’, will be attended by local, regional and international officials of key government ministries and agencies as well as private-sector organisations.

 

The conference was launched during a press briefing at the University of the West Indies’ (UWI) Mona Campus in St. Andrew on Wednesday, April 26.

 

In his remarks, Conference Chairman, Professor Halden Morris, said the primary objective of the event was to create an advocacy platform for integrating sustainable principles in regional TVET polices, practices and programmes.

 

“We particularly view this conference as important because it is including broader dynamics of industry in our midst. TVET is about preparing persons to take us to the next level where the workforce is concerned,” he said.

 

Professor Morris informed that the conference specifically seeks to encourage a participatory approach during research presentations, and facilitate a high-tech exposition by industry and commerce stakeholders.

 

“We need to explore TVET innovations for sustainable creative solutions to the challenges that we experience in the Caribbean. We need to move our workforce from the entry-level preparation to advanced-level preparation so we can access economic gains moving forward,” he further stated.

 

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Education Officer, Lena Buckle-Scott said the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information is particularly pleased to be partnering in the conference’s staging.

 

She said the Jamaican education system has long recognised the role of TVET in realising sustainable development.

 

Mrs. Buckle-Scott cited the development of a TVET policy and an integration model, which have been providing a regulatory framework for programme development and sustainability.

 

“The Ministry has commenced the roll-out of a National Standards Curriculum (NSC) which has integrated TVET in early years learning (from) grades one to six. In fact, TVET is integrated at grades one to nine, and it also stands as a discrete discipline at grades seven to nine,” she stated.

 

The Deputy Chief Education Officer noted that all schools offer at least one TVET subject and, further, that there are currently 130 schools offering three or more TVET subjects.

 

She stated that students have the opportunity to sit exit examinations in the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC), Caribbean Vocational Qualification (CVQ) and National Vocational Qualification of Jamaica (NVQJ), and City and Guilds.

 

“Another key aspect of our best practices is Resourcing TVET. The Ministry pays in excess of $100 million per year on exam fees for students, and over $150 million has been expended for this year on the provision of equipment for schools under the Rationalisation of TVET resources in schools,” Mrs. Buckle-Scott informed.

 

Meanwhile, she said the Ministry has reviewed the Labour Market Survey to identify new and emerging programmes and, consequently, new subject areas have been introduced.

 

Among these are Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Digital Animation, Printing and Computer Graphics, Call and Contact Centre Operation Level 1, Customer Service Level 1, Food & Drink, Fashion Designing, Floral Arrangement, Motor Vehicle Air Conditioning System Level 2, Renewable Energy, Apiculture, Crop Production and Small ruminants – goat- and sheep-rearing.

 

The conference is being hosted in conjunction with the University of the West Indies; Education Ministry; HEART/Trust NTA; British Council; University of Technology Jamaica; Petroleum Corporation of Trinidad; and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

 

Topics being covered include quality assurance in TVET for youth empowerment; innovation and entrepreneurship propelled by quality TVET for wealth creation; and financing TVET for sustainable global reach.

 

CAPTION: Chairman of the Third Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in the Caribbean, Professor Halden Morris, addressing Wednesday’s press launch at the University of the West Indies’ Mona Campus in St. Andrew on Wednesday, April 26. At left is Education Programme Specialist, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Dr. Claude Akpabie.

JIS: State Minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, is calling for the revitalisation of student councils in schools where they are not currently functioning.

 

He noted that student participation, through these councils, is a vital part of the leadership of institutions.

 

“I hope that you are incorporating your students in a real way, and put them at the centre of learning as a partner in the process of building a great institution. Too many leaders give a token response to having students as a vital part of the process,” he said.

 

“Leadership is a critical component in whether an institution rises or falls. Students should be encouraged to take ownership and be made to be part of the leadership of their schools,” Mr. Green added.

 

He was addressing hundreds of principals, vice-principals and heads of departments from schools across the island at an educational leadership and management training session at Mandeville Hotel, Manchester, on April 19.

 

The State Minister told the group that they are among the most important people in the educational matrix, noting that schools rise on the backs of their leaders.

 

“Good leadership makes a significant difference in your lives; the Ministry has recognised this and wants to make your job easier. Leadership is truly about directing, motivating, inspiring and creating an atmosphere where others want to participate to make schools and institutions better,” he pointed out.

 

He urged the members to recognise their weaknesses and deficiencies and take steps to make the necessary improvements.

 

He noted that there were many examples of good leadership throughout the education system, but not enough is being shared.

 

“My hope is that from what you do today, you will share among each other your successes, difficulties and how you are crafting solutions to deal with them. We look externally, but sometimes we have the answers among us. Share and transfer knowledge today so you leave feeling more inspired and better able to lead your institutions,” he urged.

 

The State Minister also pointed to the need to prepare students for the demands of the global labour market.

 

“How many of you are expanding or limiting the horizons of the young people you deal with?” he asked, noting that “now more than ever, we are not training only for Jamaica, because the world is now our complete playground”.

 

Noting that years ago, the tendency was to encourage bright students to do law and medicine, Mr. Green said technical skills are the leading source of jobs today, and these areas are commanding top salaries.

 

As it relates to school maintenance, he informed that significant sums are being allocated for infrastructure works at primary schools. “The allocation for each child has moved from $850 to $2,500,” he pointed out.

 

CAPTION: Principals, vice-principals and heads of departments from schools across the island attend an educational leadership and management training session at the Mandeville Hotel, Manchester, on April 19.

 

JIS: State Minister for Education, Youth and Information, Floyd Green, is encouraging students to explore careers in computer-based fields, which can create wealth for them.

 

“There are so many people in Jamaica making millions now and they barely leave their home,” he pointed out.

 

Citing for example the web-based profession of social media manager, he noted that almost every company now has this position, which did not exist five years ago.

 

The state minister was speaking at a career expo hosted by the International University of the Caribbean (IUC) at its Old Hope Road location in St Andrew yesterday.

 

He noted that information is readily available on the Internet on the many career opportunities “so you have no excuse not to know about them”.

 

Green pointed out that there are teachers in Jamaica who are offering English classes online to persons in Japan and China, who are paying for this service in US currency.

 

He advised students, in choosing a career, to find what they are passionate about, what they are good at and love “and see if you can align that what you want to do in life”.  

 

The state minister further advised that writing a five-year plan for their lives can help to jump-start this process.

 

He urged students to believe in themselves, noting that the only way they will be successful at what they do is to have confidence in their abilities.

 

“Confidence makes the difference. Approach life with that self-belief and confidence that, regardless of circumstances, you were born to be great, and you’re going to be great,” he stressed.

 

The state minister noted that persons who have achieved success did not necessarily have easy lives, and not everything went according to plan, but “you have to keep believing that despite the setback and the circumstances, you are going to make it”.

 

He said many Jamaicans from very humble beginnings have gone on to do great things, due to belief in their abilities, and that this greatness is attainable by others.

 

The expo was put on in collaboration with Good Deeds Foundation Jamaica.

 

CAPTION: State Minister for Education, Youth and Information, Floyd Green (2nd left), is in light conversation with (from left), President, Good Deeds Foundation Jamaica, Kiddist McCoy; President of the International University of the Caribbean (IUC), Reverend Maitland Evans; and Chief Executive Officer of Patwa Apparel, Heneka Watkis-Porter. Occasion was a career expo hosted by the IUC at its Old Hope Road location in St. Andrew on April 20. (Photo: JIS) 

JIS: General Secretary of Education International, Fred van Leeuwen, says teachers should view the profession as their most valuable asset and their most effective weapon to realise their democratic ideals and aspirations.

 

“We should not allow outsiders, self-proclaimed experts, consultancy agencies, and corporations to determine our professional standards,” he urged.

 

Mr. van Leeuwen, a native of the Netherlands, was giving the keynote address at the 16th Annual Education Conference of the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA), at the Hilton Rose Hall Resort & Spa, St. James, on April 18.

 

The General Secretary said a key characteristic of any profession is that its standards, principles and objectives are determined by its members.

 

“Doctors, architects, lawyers, to give some examples, set their own professional standards, within legal frameworks defined by the public authorities,” he noted.

 

“But we, teachers and educators, seem to be gradually losing our identity… For that reason, Education International has started developing our own international guidelines for the teaching profession that will help member organisations to take the lead in setting professional standards in their countries,” he added.

 

The General Secretary said there is no contradiction between “our professional aspirations and the terms, employment conditions and trade union rights we want to achieve. They are complementary.”

 

Education International represents organisations of teachers and other education employees across the globe. It is the world’s largest federation of unions, representing more than 32 million education employees in 170 countries and territories across the globe.

 

CAPTION: General Secretary of Education International, Fred van Leeuwen, giving the keynote address at the 16th Annual Jamaica Teachers’ Association Education Conference, held at the Hilton Rose Hall Resort & Spa in Montego Bay, St. James, on April 18.

JIS: The Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information Floyd Green says steps are already being taken to make the process of adopting children in state care easier.

 

“The process of adoption has been carefully reviewed, and the first thing we did was to look at the steps involved in the process and where it was possible, removed the bureaucracy without sacrificing the checks that need to be undertaken to ensure safety standards are upheld,” he explained.

 

His comments came after Member of Parliament for North Central Clarendon Pearnel Charles lamented the difficulty of adopting wards of the State.

 

“We have to make our adoption programme so flexible that people wanting to adopt children locally or in the Diaspora can do so with ease. I have got complaints from

 

persons wanting to adopt and who have been to Jamaica several times trying to get a child but are yet to get through because of the bureaucracy.

 

 

 

More Flexible

 

 

We need to make it more flexible so people who are willing and able can take the children out of homes and put them in better homes,” Charles said.

 

Green, who was the keynote speaker at the official opening of the newly refurbished Summerfield Childcare Facility yesterday, added that although there was a significant backlog, more than 160 children were placed in homes both in Jamaica and overseas last year.

 

He said that the Child Development Agency has also been mandated with the task of going through all the facilities and identify those children who can be adopted and prepare a complete listing of same.

 

The Government currently has responsibility for more than 4,000 children, with approximately half of that number in foster care. The rest are in childcare facilities across the island, both public and private. Those in foster care are still being monitored by the Government.

 

Transitional programme coming for children with nowhere to go

 

 

Floyd Green, state minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, told The Gleaner that a transitional living programme is now in the making for those persons raised in State care,and who have reached 18 years old and have nowhere to go.

 

“We have got significant resources from USAID to build a facility and we have started a programme of transition years before they are ready to leave to prepare them to make the transition.”

 

 

 

Play Therapy On Stream

 

 

The Government has also mandated that more extracurricular activities, play therapy and other programmes be implemented to help wards work through behavioural problems and other issues they may have.

 

The Summerfield Childcare Facility was originally a boys’ home which started in 1976 with 16 boys ages nine-18 years. It was owned and funded by the Jamaican government.

 

In 2014, placements were suspended to effect major renovations to the facility. Construction of a multipurpose building, bathrooms, offices, re-tiled floors, ceiling repairs and the construction of a ramp, among other things, was done at a cost of approximately $50 million.

JIS: Some $50 million has been spent by the Child Development Agency (CDA) to refurbish the Summerfield Child Facility in Clarendon, which houses 31 teenage girls.

 

Speaking at the official reopening on April 18, State Minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, said the work had been put in to make sure that the staff and the facility have a positive impact on the girls.

 

“This is a difficult job that requires a lot of sacrifice. The members of the CDA team who work in this area are in it because they love it and they have a genuine passion. What we are doing here is creating a home,” Mr. Green said.

 

“The children do not choose to interact with us, but because of their very difficult circumstances they are forced to, so we must ensure that their interaction is pleasurable and adds positivity to their lives and helps to take away some of the difficulties,” the State Minister added.

 

Mr. Green said the Government is looking at all the island’s childcare facilities to make them more comfortable for the wards of the State.

 

He called on members of neighbouring communities to look out for the homes, reach out and protect them.

 

“If you have a CDA facility in your area, see how you can help to make it better. The reality is that the Government will always need help to find resources to raise the level of these facilities. Adopt a home for Labour Day on behalf of the children and go out and make them better,” Mr. Green encouraged.

 

Meanwhile, the State Minister said the Government is working to make adoption easier in Jamaica.

 

“One of the first things we did was to look at the steps people had to take to adopt a child and where it was possible to remove bureaucracy without sacrificing the need to ensure the homes are safe for the children,” he noted.

 

“Last year, we placed more than 160 children in homes locally and abroad. Once there is a home and we have verified that the people will give them full support, we will place the children in them,” Mr. Green said.

 

The State Minister emphasised that the society should play a greater role in protecting girls and give them the opportunity to do well by creating the right environment for them to blossom and grow.

 

CAPTION: State Minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green (left), cuts the ribbon to officially reopen the refurbished Summerfield Child Care Facility, in Clarendon, on April 18.

JIS: Head of the General Studies Department at Holland High School in Trelawny, Dageanna Spencer-Hull, has pointed to the need for Jamaican students to be more aware about matters relating to regional integration.

 

She noted that social studies results in the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination have been below par over the years and students have been shying away from topics that have to do with the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), including the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).

 

“It was kind of eye opening to see that over the years the scores from students in this particular area have always been low,” Mrs. Spencer-Hull told JIS News.

 

“What we are also seeing is that students…have been shying away from answering the questions…having very little if any interest in the subject whatsoever,” she noted further.

 

It is within this context that Holland High recently collaborated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade to host a CSME Seminar for CSEC students on the grounds of the nearby William Knibb Memorial High School.

 

Students from high schools across Trelawny and St. Ann were invited to participate.

 

“This forum is just a start to see how best we can find a solution to this problem,” Mrs. Spencer-Hull told JIS NEWS.

 

“I have a passion for students and I have a passion for social studies. I really want to see the improvement as it is clear from analysing the results over the years that something needs to be done to get our students to be more interested in the things that are happening right inside their backyards,” she added.

 

Mrs. Spencer-Hull said it was very encouraging to see the large turnout of students, noting that she would love to see similar fora in other parts of the country.

 

“This particular topic is all about us as Caribbean people and we want our students to embrace it…not just to see it in the book and ignore it,” she said.

 

“When we can get them to come to a forum like this and where things can be explained to them in a manner where they can understand and appreciate, I am confident we will start to see a difference in how they approach the subject of social studies and also in the results of the exam,” she contended.

 

Ms. Spencer-Hull told JIS NEWS that she wants to make the forum an annual event to give students a broader understanding of Jamaica’s role as part of a regional body.

 

CAPTION: Students from high school in Trelawny and St. Ann participate in a forum on Caribbean integration at the William Knibb Memorial High School in Trelawny, recently.