JIS: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, has assured that adequate funds have been disbursed to support the operations of high schools islandwide for the 2016/17 academic year.

 

He was speaking during a post-Cabinet media briefing at Jamaica House on Wednesday (October 26), where he provided an update on the Government’s tuition policy.

 

Senator Reid said two tranches of the $3.9 billion of budgeted tuition support, totalling more than $1 billion, were paid in June and September and advised that a third, scheduled for December, will be paid in the next couple of days.

 

He said the funding has provided support for 761 academic and 153 non-academic staff members across the Ministry’s six educational regions. He indicated that the overall budget for the remainder of the year was $502.5 million.

 

“So, the secondary system is well funded this year. Even where schools were (initially) concerned … we made sure to give them additional funding for key staffing that they required and that also bolstered their overall funding availability,” the Minister said.

 

The Government’s overall funding support for the education sector has increased from $2.5 billion to $5.5 billion for the current academic year.

 

This is consequent on the abolition of compulsory auxiliary fee payments in high schools. Parents are encouraged to make voluntary contributions to the institutions.

 

“We think it was a very successful campaign and we are going to be holding (school administrators) to account in terms of raising standards and performance,” Senator Reid said.

 

Meanwhile, Senator Reid advised that an announcement regarding a comprehensive programme of transformation for the early-childhood sector and the attendant funding support will be made at the start of the 2017/18 fiscal year, next April.

 

CAPTIONS: Education, Youth and Information Minister, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid

JIS: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information will be reviewing student councils across the island to ensure that these bodies are actively engaged and functioning at an optimal level.

 

State Minister, Hon. Floyd Green, in making the disclosure, said it has come to the attention of the Ministry that some councils are not as active as they should be in representing the interests of the student body.

 

He noted that student councils play an important role in the effective operation of secondary schools.

 

“You have a position to play by law. It is enshrined in the Education Act and as such, we expect that every single secondary school will have a student council president, a student council body, and that the president will sit on the Board of the institution and participate in the governance of the school,” he said.

 

“It is important that students have a say in how their schools are run. Schools are set up to serve you the students,” he stressed.

 

Mr. Green was addressing the installation ceremony for executive members of the National Secondary Students’ Council (NSSC) held on Wednesday (October 12) at the Institute of Jamaica in Kingston.

 

Under the Education Act of 1980, all public secondary institutions must have a student council, which consists of elected representatives from the student body, with at least one staff advisor also selected by the students.

 

The council has the right to democratically elect their own representatives; have representation on the school board; meet with the principal and staff on any matter affecting students’ interests; and hold regular meetings to conduct business on the students’ behalf, with due regard to the smooth functioning of the institution.

 

The 20-member NSSC, which will serve from September 2016 to August 2017, is comprised of representatives of schools spanning the six education regions.

 

These are The Queens’ School, Wolmer’s Boys’, Camperdown High, Campion College, Denham Town High, and St. Hugh’s High in Kingston and St. Andrew; Morant Bay High and Paul Bogle High, St. Thomas; Ferncourt High, St. Ann; Mt. Alvernia High, St. James; Belmont Academy and Frome Technical High, Westmoreland; DeCarteret College, Belair High, and Manchester High, Manchester; Clarendon College, Clarendon; St. Jago High and Cedar Grove Academy, St. Catherine.

 

Mr. Green commended the outgoing members of the NSSC and encouraged the newly installed members to work collaboratively with the Ministry to address challenges.

 

“I want to commend you on new initiatives that help our students. The NSSC has an exceptional legacy… . It has created countless leaders… a number of them started their leadership development as student councillors,” he noted.

 

Executive Director, National Integrity Action, Professor Trevor Munroe, who was the guest speaker at the function, encouraged the students to continue the legacy of activism that encourages positive social change.

 

“The empowerment of students at the school level is an important apprenticeship in democracy. Such preparation for participation in democracy at the school level is absolutely essential if our young people are to fulfil their role in enhancing Jamaica’s democracy,” Professor Munroe pointed out.

 

The NSSC is the umbrella organisation for all student councils in Jamaica. It aims to give students the opportunity to voice their opinions on matters that affect them.

 

The NSSC represents more than 160 secondary schools and over 30,000 students, advocating on their behalf and providing representation in the decision-making process of schools at all levels.

 

CAPTION: Members of the National Secondary Students’ Council (NSSC) for 2016-2017, share a photographic moment at the installation ceremony held on October 12 at the Institute of Jamaica in Kingston.

JIS: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information will, this year, be offering Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) subsidies for an additional subject to wards of the State and students on the Programme of Advancement through Health and Education (PATH).

 

This was noted by Portfolio Minister, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, at a post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House, today (October 12).

 

The Ministry will continue to offer subsidies, valued at $450 million, on four subjects – Mathematics, English Language, Information Technology, and a science subject. The additional subsidy is estimated to cost $50 million.

 

Senator Reid said subsidies are also being provided for three units for the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations (CAPE), as well as for the Caribbean Vocational Qualification (CVQ), the National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) and the City and Guilds examinations.

 

Students are required to have an average of 55 per cent to qualify for subsidies.

 

The Minister also announced that the Ministry, through the Overseas Examinations Commission, will provide full payment for registration and examination fees for students sitting the City and Guilds Mathematics and English Language Stage Two and Three examinations.

 

This waiver of the fees is projected to cost some $23 million.

 

The Minister further reported that Jamaica Public Service (JPS) Foundation will be paying the CSEC fees for students sitting electrical and electronic technology subjects. Schools should have a pass rate of more than 60 per cent for the past two academic years in the subject areas to qualify.

 

Schools entering those subjects for the first time must have an overall CSEC sit rate of 90 per cent over the past two years. Individual students must also have an average of 60 per cent or higher.

 

The NCB Foundation will also continue to provide subsidy for Principles of Business and Principles of Accounts. The qualifying grade is 70 per cent.

 

Senator Reid said registration to sit the CSEC must be done through the Ministry’s regional offices for subsidies to apply.

 

Meanwhile, the Minister is reminding school administrators that all students in grades 11 are to be registered to sit examinations in keeping with their career pathways, interests and abilities. He said students entering fourth form should also be settled into a course of study leading up to their exams.

 

“Our focus at the Ministry is to ensure that all students exiting the secondary level must do so with at least five subjects, including Mathematics, English Language and a marketable Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) skill. This is to ensure that we have young people ready for viable and legitimate economic activity,” he said.

 

The Minister emphasised that starting next year, all students should leave secondary school with passes in those subject areas.

 

CAPTION: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, addresses a post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House on October 12.

JIS: Human trafficking is now being taught in the nation’s schools.

 

The curriculum was rolled out in more than 500 primary and secondary institutions at the start of the new academic year in September, following the success of the pilot introduced in 49 schools across the island in September 2015.

 

It was developed by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, in collaboration with the National Task Force Against Trafficking in Persons.

 

Director of Safety and Security in Schools, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Coleridge Minto, said the introduction of the curriculum will promote greater awareness among students and teachers of human trafficking and prevent them from becoming victims.

 

He was speaking at a Ministry of Justice Sensitisation Seminar on Justice Services held recently in Montego Bay.

 

He informed that 1,000 school officials and deans of discipline have been sensitised on matters relating to human trafficking, and more than 400 safety and security officers are to be trained.

 

ASP Minto said information on human trafficking has also been included in the safety and security programme of the Ministry to ensure that all school administrators are empowered on the issue.

 

Meanwhile, ASP Minto is urging parents to monitor their children online, as predators often use social media to lure their victims.

 

“We have to understand the space that our children enter and who they are communicating with. These human traffickers prey on persons, but they are not putting up their real faces… so students, teenagers, young ladies using the Internet, they have to be careful because they never know who is on the other end,” he noted.

 

He pointed out that persons involved in human trafficking will also use online sources and the print media to advertise attractive-paying non-existent jobs in order to lure persons into their trap.

 

“As you seek to apply for jobs online or you see these jobs in the newspapers, you may want to do some research on them before you actually apply and agree to meet someone,” ASP Minto advised.

 

“We have had cases where persons would have been recruited under the guise that they were going to be employed and, thereafter, became a victim of human trafficking,” he said.

 

CAPTION: Director of Safety and Security in Schools in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Coleridge Minto, addresses a Ministry of Justice sensitisation seminar on justice services held recently in Montego Bay.

JIS: World Teachers’ Day is an opportunity to acknowledge our teachers and say thanks for the significant contributions they make in our classrooms and communities.

 

Celebrated in more than 100 countries world-wide, including Jamaica, the day which is observed annually on October 5, commemorates teachers’ organizations worldwide.

 

We thank God for sparing our nation and teachers from the ravages of Hurricane Matthew.

 

In welcoming the observance of World Teachers’ Day, being recognized under the theme,” Valuing Teachers, Improving their Status”, let me assure Jamaicans of this administration’s continued support for our teachers who continue to build the nation through their resilience, creativity, commitment, tremendous work and untiring service.

 

Teachers are the cornerstone of the education system and a major influence on the development of our children.

 

Teachers along with the home, and church, are one of the first avenues through which knowledge is introduced.

 

As important agents of socialisation and role models for children, our teachers are powerful agents of change in our society, which is in need of radical social change to become a more wholesome, gentler, and more caring society.

 

The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information (MOEY) through the Jamaica Teaching Council (JTC), has opened new avenues for sustained professional development and improved competencies for all educators.

 

This will inure to the continuous endeavour for excellence, the raising of aspirations and achievements that will result in beneficial outcomes for all learners.

 

I urge all Jamaicans to show more respect and appreciation for our teachers. Their task is not an easy one, but one that is necessary and often undertaken under challenging circumstances and with limited resources, even as we expect spectacular results.

 

Our teachers must see us all as their partners in building an educated nation. On behalf of this grateful nation, the Ministry salutes you on this day of appreciation.

 

Best wishes for a happy World Teachers’ Day. God Bless You All.

 

CAPTION: The Hon. Senator Ruel Reid, CD, Minister of Education, Youth and Information.

The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, on the advice of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management, has ordered that schools remain closed on Tuesday, October 4, 2016. 

 

This is in response to the impending arrival of Hurricane Matthew, which is expected within the next 12 to 24 hours.

 

“We encourage school administrators to stay tuned to the media in order to receive regular updates from the ministry as the situation unfolds over the next two days,” a news release from the ministry read.

 

“Due to the unpredictable nature of this massive system, a tropical storm warning is still in effect for the island, despite the fair weather conditions at the moment,” stated portfolio Minister Ruel Reid.

JIS: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information is looking to make foreign languages compulsory for students from grades one to nine.

 

Portfolio Minister Ruel Reid said the move forms part of the Ministry’s foreign language policy in schools.

 

“I have already signalled to my ministry to come up with a strategy of how we are going to ensure that foreign languages are part of our primary curriculum,” he said. Reid was addressing the annual general meeting of the National Association of Spanish Teachers and the Jamaica Association of French Teachers at the Caenwood Centre in Kingston on Friday. He noted that the plan is for students “to do a menu of foreign languages” up to third form. He said the hope is that teachers will employ ingenious ways to impart the languages in order to capture students’ interest so that they will be encouraged to specialise after grade nine.

 

Reid pointed out that having a second language is an asset in the global labour market, adding that a multilingual labour force will better position the country for new areas of investments and trade. Reid thanked the various embassies, such as France, Spain, Chile, Cuba, Venezuela and Brazil, and organisations such as the Spanish-Jamaica Foundation and the Organization of American States, for their support to the country in the teaching and learning of various languages over the years.

 

CAPTION: The Hon. Senator Ruel Reid, CD, Minister of Education, Youth and Information

 

JIS: State Minister in the Education, Youth and Information Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green, has hailed the efforts of the Jamaica Stock Exchange to promote financial literacy  among high school students and teachers through its Stock Market Game.

 

“They (JSE) are innovators at heart. They have been…finding ways to ensure that as a country we get more financially literate,” Mr. Green said, noting that the game is helping to demystify certain principles and concepts regarding the stock market.

 

Mr. Green was addressing a luncheon at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in New Kingston on September 30 to promote the new format of the game, which includes teachers.

 

The JSE launched the Stock Market Game in 2008 as a fun way to introduce students to elements of stock market trading.      Students from fourth to sixth form learn about different companies, watch for trends and make speculations.

 

The new format has shown potential to motivate teachers and students to better plan for their future and to engage in financial planning, research and use of investment products and services.

 

Mr. Green, in the meantime, said the Government is committed to strengthening the Junior Stock Exchange, with the recent tabling of a Bill in Parliament to restore concession to companies.

 

He move, he said, will lead to business growth and employment creation.

 

He cited the success of companies such as Knutsford Express, Kingston Live Entertainment Group and LASCO that  have received benefits under the junior market.

 

Concessions include a 10-year period when no corporate tax is paid for the first five years and 50 per cent of the prevailing rate is paid in the next five years.

 

The Junior Stock Exchange was established in 2009 to encourage and facilitate the development of smaller companies, particularly newer enterprises by enabling them to raise equity.

 

Meanwhile, Senior Marketing Officer of the JSE, Michael Johnson, said it is important for students to be financially literate.

 

Having such knowledge, he said, will make them more prudent during their earning years.

 

Sagicor Investments Jamaica Limited is the main sponsor of the game.

 

 

CAPTION: State Minister in the Education, Youth and Information Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green (centre), greets Vice President of Capital Markets and Fund Management at Sagicor Investments Jamaica Limited, Kevin Donaldson. Occasion was a luncheon to promote the Stock Market Game to high school teachers, held on September 30 at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in New Kingston. Looking on is Senior Marketing Officer, Jamaica Stock Exchange, Michael Johnson.

JIS: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, acting on the advice of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management has ordered that schools should be closed on Monday October 3, 2016. This is in response to the impending arrival of Hurricane Matthew which is expected within the next 24 hours.

 

The Metrological Service of Jamaica has indicated that Hurricane Matthew has been upgraded to a Category 4 (four) status. The Ministry has instructed all schools to activate their emergency plans immediately.  Please note that all schools that function as disaster relief centres, should put in safe keeping all important documents and educational materials. Those schools that serve as relief centres are prepared to facilitate arrangements for delivery of supplies on their premises.

 

We encourage school administrators to stay tuned to the media in order to receive regular updates from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information as the situation unfolds over the next two days.” The safety of our children and all Jamaicans is at this time most paramount, stated portfolio Minister, Senator Ruel Reid .

 

Further updates from the Ministry of Education will be issued through the media as the situation demands.

 

 

 

For Further Information Please Contact:

 

Sheryl Bromfield

 

Public Relations and Communications Officer

 

Communications Unit

 

Ministry of Education

 

Tel: 279 – 8990

 

CAPTION: The Hon. Senator Ruel Reid, CD, Minister of Education, Youth and Information.