JIS: The Government has spent approximately $533 million to build 69 classrooms and accompanying amenities in primary and secondary schools since 2016, to take students off the double shift system and ease overcrowding.

 

Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, made the disclosure during a press conference at the Ministry in Kingston on February 5.

 

He said in September 2017, Green Park Primary and Junior High; Kitson Town All-Age; Mandeville Primary and Junior High; Villa Road Primary and Junior High; Maggotty High; John Mills Primary, Junior High and Infant, as well as Pembroke Hall Primary, were taken off the shift system.

 

Additionally, he said Mineral Heights Primary and Port Henderson Primary Schools came off the system in 2018, while Exchange All-Age, Cedric Titus High, Papine High and Muschette High are slated to do so soon. Only 38 institutions remain on the system.

 

Meanwhile, Senator Reid said the Ministry has embarked on expansion and upgrading projects to convert some institutions to full high schools.

 

“Within that list, works have commenced at Nain, New Forest and Aberdeen, and funds have been mobilised for completion,” he disclosed.

 

The Minister also advised that similar work has been concluded at Stony Hill High School.

 

Meanwhile, Senator Reid said a technical planning team has completed preliminary activities at Discovery Bay All-Age, which is also being converted to a high school.

 

“Once finalised, a design will be completed and contracting will be done thereafter. The desired timeline for this upgrade is to have the first phase completed for the start of the new [2019/20] school year,” he said.

 

Senator Reid said $12.3 million was also spent to significantly improve the sewerage system at Glen Stuart Primary School.

 

He also disclosed that 33 ramps have been built in schools to improve access for physically challenged students.

 

CAPTION: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, addressing a press conference at the Ministry’s National Heroes Circle offices in Kingston on February 5.

JIS: Dean of Discipline at Petersfield High School in Westmoreland, Junior Clarke, is reporting a significant reduction in violent incidents at the institution, as a result of strategic intervention measures.

 

In an interview with JIS News, Mr. Clarke said that in 2016, 17 per cent of the school’s population was involved in some form of violent act, but in 2018 that figure was reduced to five per cent.

 

He said the intervention programmes included the Identity, Purpose, Attitude and Destiny (IPAD) for Life Youth Empowerment and Mentorship Summer Camp, which targeted at-risk youth.

 

Mr. Clarke noted that the camp, with the support of parents, played a critical role in improving the conduct of students with behavioural challenges. “So, all the youth who had been suspended or were getting into trouble were mandated to be a part of this [IPAD for life] camp, in which they participated and it was a success,” he added.

“In addition to that, though, we decided that parental involvement had to be more significant, so before it reaches a critical state of a child being suspended or getting into a fight or gang-related activity, we had regular conferences, whether via telephone or in person, as we recognise that it made a major impact on the level of violent incidents that we were seeing,” he said.

 

Mr. Clarke further noted that an active mentorship programme at the school has also been bearing fruit.

 

“It is called Most Valuable Person (MVP). So, mentors were chosen from the student population and they act as mentors to younger students and even older students who were at risk. These students were also paired with teachers and even members of the community, who provided support to them,” he said.

 

Mr. Clarke added that the school administration will continue to take a strategic approach to change the behaviour of at-risk students.

 

CAPTION: Dean of Discipline at Petersfield High in Westmoreland, Junior Clarke (right), in discussion with former Director of the Safety and Security in Schools Programme, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Coleridge Minto, during a recent visit to the institution.

JIS: State Minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, has called for organisations to put measures in place to ensure greater efficiency in operations.

 

“We have to take a look at our processes…especially across the public sector. We lose a lot of productive time and unnecessary energy, which leads to a retardation of our possibilities for growth and creativity,” he said.

 

He noted that the Government is moving to ensure greater efficiency in service delivery through the Public Sector Transformation and Modernisation Programme.

 

“We recognise that we need to re-examine our processes and ensure that we are doing things in the most efficient way possible,” he noted.

 

Mr. Green was delivering the keynote address at the opening ceremony of LearnFest Caribbean 2019 at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston on Wednesday (February 6).

 

The two-day event, from February 6 to 7, seeks to promote operational efficiency across various industries. It is being held under the theme ‘Level up and Set Yourself Apart’.

 

Mr. Green, in his presentation, pointed to the need for improved communication across the public and private sectors in ensuring transparency and efficiency in executing projects.

 

“People want and expect to know what is happening and they expect to know it in real time. Regardless of the size of the project, people want to know the ‘how’ and the ‘why’ especially if you work in the public sector,” he said.

 

He said that an effective communication strategy should be an integral part of project development in order to ensure stakeholder buy-in.

 

“People don’t want to wait months after the project is far gone to appreciate why they should buy into this project. I think that is one of the things we need to pay keen attention to,” he added.

 

Founder of LearnFest Caribbean and Chief Executive Officer of Project Management Global Institute (PGMI), Sherrone Blake Lobban, said that the event is targeting project managers and other professionals across various disciplines.

 

“It involves discussions on how persons …can utilise project management to be more efficient. The conference is not only for project managers. It is for anybody that utilises projects,” she noted.

 

The event will feature workshops, interactive sessions and networking activities.

 

CAPTION: Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green (right), greets Founder of LearnFest Caribbean and Chief Executive Officer of Project Management Global Institute (PGMI), Sherrone Blake Lobban, during the opening ceremony of LearnFest Caribbean 2019 on Wednesday (February 6) at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston. The two-day event is being held from February 6 to 7 under the theme ‘Level up and Set Yourself Apart’.

JIS: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information is dedicated to providing the requisite resources to ensure sustained improvement in student performance in mathematics.

 

Portfolio Minister, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, said that comprehensive and targeted interventions are being implemented at the primary and secondary levels in keeping with this objective.

 

He noted that the Ministry continues to sustain implementation of the mathematics marketing campaign ‘Math Counts’ using social media, print media and advertisements on radio and television, as well as the annual observance of Mathematics Week in March.

 

He said the national mathematics exposition, which is the main event for Math Week, has seen attendance grown from 2,500 in 2013 to more than 8,000 students and teachers last year.

 

“These programmes are aimed at helping all Jamaicans to see the importance and relevance of mathematics to their everyday lives and the country’s economic growth and development,” Senator Reid noted.

 

He further pointed to the Leadership of Mathematics Programme developed under the National Mathematics Programme, which is being delivered through the National College for Educational Leadership to all principals and heads of secondary departments.

 

He noted that annual training sessions are facilitated for new principals and heads of departments.

 

Senator Reid was speaking at the launch of The Mico University College’s International Mathematics Summit at the institution’s premises on Marescaux Road, St. Andrew, on January 30.

 

Mico is collaborating with the Education Ministry to host the inaugural event from March 25-27 under the theme: ‘Mathematics for Economic Growth and Job Creation’.

 

The summit, which will be integrated into the Ministry’s National Mathematics Week, will provide a forum for exploring, analysing and consolidating international best practices in the teaching of mathematics.

 

CAPTION: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid (right), in conversation with Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Board of Directors, The Mico University College, Professor Neville Ying, during the launch of the Mico International Mathematics Summit at the institution’s premises on Marescaux Road, St. Andrew, on January 30.

JIS: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, says the Government is undertaking an “unprecedented level of work” in the upgrading of school plants.

 

He said that just over 400 educational institutions have benefited from major repairs or expansion over the past two and a half years.

 

The scope of works, which include building of new classrooms, repair and upgrading of canteens, has enabled several institutions to transition to single shift.

 

“There are so many activities to be done, because the need was so great, and I was insistent that we must push the resources, push the programme because schools were asking for a lot of assistance,” he noted.

 

“We have had to ask some schools to take on some of their own procurement and management of projects,” he added.

 

Minister Reid was delivering the keynote address at the official opening of a learning centre at the Rock River Primary School in Clarendon on January 29.

 

The $10 million facility was built by the Japanese Government in partnership with the Rock River Foundation.

 

It includes a library and computer room equipped with computer terminals, laptops, multimedia projector, teaching equipment and learning aids, and will benefit the students and the wider community.

 

Minister Reid hailed the partnership to construct the learning centre and the continued investment by Japan in Jamaica’s education sector.

 

For his part, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr., welcomed the new facility, which he noted, will benefit the entire Rock River community.

 

Meanwhile, Japan’s Ambassador to Jamaica, His Excellency Hiromasa Yamazaki, noted that the project is part of the Grant Assistance for Grass-Roots Human Security initiative, which provides grants for community development projects across various sectors.

 

He said that his Government is committed to investing in education in order to empower people “so that they can lead sustainable lives and livelihoods.”

 

CAPTION: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid (centre), and Japan’s Ambassador to Jamaica, His Excellency Hiromasa Yamazaki (right), point to the plaque dedicating the learning centre at the Rock River Primary School in Clarendon, at the official opening of the facility on January 29. Looking on at left is Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr.

JIS: Cabinet has signed off on the draft Jamaica Teaching Council (JTC) Bill, says Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid.

 

The Bill seeks to establish a governing body for the teaching profession and a licensing and registration regime for all government-paid teachers. The licensing regime is expected to take effect when the Bill is passed.

 

“We have finished the full draft and Cabinet has signed off on it. So, there are just one or two comments that the Attorney General’s Department needs to make, so we can move that to the Legislation Committee (of the Cabinet),” he said.

 

Senator Reid was addressing the launch of the Mico International Mathematics Summit at the institution’s premises on Marescaux Road, in St. Andrew, on January 30.

 

The Government’s move to implement a regime for the licensing and registration of teachers is aimed at ensuring greater levels of accountability and professionalism.

 

“The registration and licensing will ensure we place the teachers so trained and qualified, demonstrating competence in the right subject areas, at the right level of the education system and also the requirement for continuous professional development,” Senator Reid said.

 

The Jamaica Teaching Council was established in 2008 as a part of the Education Transformation Strategy to improve the quality and coverage of education.

 

The Council’s mandate is focused on achieving its ultimate goal of repositioning teaching as the profession of choice.

 

CAPTION: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, addresses the launch of the Mico International Mathematics Summit, held at the institution’s premises on Marescaux Road in St. Andrew, on January 30.

OBSERVER: JAMAICAN teachers of foreign languages are being encouraged to upgrade their skills in order to enhance students’ learning capabilities.

 

The charge comes from Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Ruel Reid, who was speaking at the 10th Foreign Languages Conference at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston on Friday.

 

“Take advantage of scholarships for upgrading your skills and for those who have not yet done so, pursue international certification in the foreign language,” he urged.

 

Senator Reid emphasised that in today’s globalised economy, foreign languages are relevant to all career fields and spheres. Therefore, if teachers are to help students to meet the requirements of the new world realities, “you too should be preparing yourselves to help our students fulfil their potential to embrace these opportunities.”

 

“Our teachers must themselves adapt to new attitudes within the context of the digital era, current trends in foreign language education that reflect learner centredness (which entails) inclusivity, knowledge creation, internationalisation and exchanges, and the Vision 2030 mantra of foreign language competence for all Jamaicans,” he added.

 

The Minister praised teachers who have done professional development in their specialist language over the past year through the Centre International d’Etudes Pédagogiques (International Centre for Educational Studies).

 

He also commended those who participated in the teaching assistantship programme facilitated by the Embassy of France; the Instituto Cervantes’ Intensive Training Programme for Spanish teachers facilitated by the Embassy of Spain; the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) French Workshop, and local workshops and coaching sessions.

In the meantime, Senator Reid said the Education Ministry remains committed to the promotion of foreign languages, with particular emphasis on the training of teachers to deliver Spanish at the primary level, and overall foreign language teachers’ professional development.

 

“We also support the efforts to improve students’ performance in foreign languages, especially in oral competence. We ask that you work with us in implementing the new foreign languages curricula that have been developed under the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. This is a platform based on linguistic performance and competence outputs and fully endorsed by the United Nations,” he said.

 

The Minister thanked members of the Jamaica Association of French Teachers (JAFT), the Alliance Française, the National Association of Spanish Teachers (ANPE) and the Spanish-Jamaican Foundation for “continued promotion of foreign languages in Jamaica, as you collaborate with embassies here in coordinating programmes for our students.”

 

The conference, staged by JAFT and ANPE, in association with the Education Ministry, was held under the theme: ‘The 21st Century Foreign Languages Landscape: More POWER to the Learner’.

 

CAPTION: REID … wants to set up a high level meeting 

CAPTION: In keeping with the Blue Ocean paradigm, the National College for Educational Leadership will be partnering with the Caribbean Maritime University to execute leadership development interventions and capacity-building initiatives for leaders in academia and industry. Director Principal- Dr Taneisha Ingleton and managers of the College, and the President of the CMU- Professor Fritz Pinnock met with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Mr. Dean-Roy Bernard, to engage in comprehensive deliberations about developing alternative blue ocean opportunities and to build on the creative competence of our leaders.#Impact2019 #blueocean #beyondcompeting#creatingworldclassleaders #NCELisinternational #stayblue    

JIS: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information is encouraging more service clubs to strengthen their partnership with the Ministry to bolster programmes being undertaken to ensure the holistic development of the nation’s children.

 

This call was made by Minister of State in the Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green, during the Kiwanis Club of Barbican fourth anniversary meeting at the Guardian Life head office in New Kingston, on January 22.

 

Three areas the State Minister cited for collaboration are mentorship, foster care and the expansion of the Brain Builder centres.

 

He said young people do better, regardless of background and circumstances, when they have a mentor to lean on, “when they have somebody they can bounce ideas off, who can help guide them down the path, and who can tell them about mistakes that they have made”.

 

“One of the things I would want to see the Kiwanis Movement and the Kiwanis Club of Barbican do is to join with us at the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information and provide us with a team of volunteers to mentor our young people,” he said.

 

Mr. Green noted that mentorship is important, particularly for children who are ageing out of the system.

 

“We want to pair every child that is ageing out of our State care system with a mentor. This will provide us with a better way to track their progress, to recognise when they are in difficulty, to intervene and to ensure that they are on a path to success in their own lives. Let us really embark on developing a battalion of mentors right across Jamaica,” he urged.

 

Turning to the foster care programme, Mr. Green encouraged the members to open their homes to children in State care and foster a child.

 

“All the research have shown us that children do better when they have families. No matter how good we organise our residential care facilities, it will never be as good as having a loving family to come home to,” he said, adding that the stipend for the programme was increased by 100 per cent last year.

 

The State Minister pointed out that there are approximately 2,000 children in State care.

 

Mr. Green said the service club can partner with the Ministry to expand aspects of the Brain Builder centres that will be operated across the island.

 

The Jamaica Brain Builders Programme aims to reduce cognitive learning challenges among infants in the country. It is a framework for action in the first 1,000 days of a child’s life, which starts from conception in the womb to age two years.

 

Under this initiative, the Early Childhood Commission (ECC) will be responsible for establishing 126 Brain Builder centres across the island, with two in each constituency.

 

In the meantime, Mr. Green commended the Kiwanis Club of Barbican for the work they have been doing in children’s homes and schools, noting that “our country and children are grateful for these”.

 

“You have done tremendous work, and I know that you will continue. I hope that as we work together to ensure that philanthropy really helps us to create a more equitable society, that we deepen our partnership with the Government to see, in some of the programmes that we have, how we can get to the root causes and remove them, so that we create a better Jamaica,” he said.

 

CAPTION: Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green (right), sharing a good laugh with (from left) Opposition Senator, Dr. Floyd Morris; President, Kiwanis Club of Barbican, Dane McLean; and Lieutenant Governor, Pam Rodney-Whyte, during the Club’s fourth anniversary meeting at the Guardian Life head office in New Kingston, on January 22.

JIS: Ambassador to the United States, Her Excellency Audrey Marks, is urging members of the diaspora to support the ‘Pledge 2 Build’ campaign, which seeks to raise funds to upgrade the infrastructure of early-childhood and primary schools.

 

She made the call as she delivered the keynote address at the David “Wagga” Hunt Scholarship Fundraising Gala, held on Saturday, January 19 in Washington DC.

 

Pledge 2 Build is an initiative of the Jamaica Diaspora Education Task Force (JDETF), which seeks to mobilise some three million Jamaicans living overseas to invest in the development of education and educational infrastructure in the country annually, starting with early childhood and teacher empowerment.

 

Ambassador Marks also lauded the organisers of the Jamaica David “Wagga” Hunt Scholarship fund for their support to students at Calabar High School and Kingston College (KC) over the past few years.

 

She noted that the initiative was an important vehicle through which the organisers had effectively joined with the leadership in shaping the minds of the boys “to become productive citizens”.

 

Noting that education is key to nation-building, Ambassador Marks, said investing in the country’s youths will “provide the platform for our country’s advancement and for the attainment of our national and internationally agreed development goals”.

 

She also praised the organisers for their efforts to sustain the David “Wagga” Hunt initiative, noting that it “is transforming the lives of 25 students from Calabar High and Kingston College, to the tune of J$10 million”.

 

“[These are] poignant examples of generosity and patriotism – traits for which Jamaicans living overseas are well known,” Ambassador Marks said.

 

The Reggae Girlz, Jamaica’s senior national female football team, was also honoured at the event for the historic achievement in 2018 as the first Caribbean team to qualify for the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France.

 

“You have added to the lustre of brand Jamaica, demonstrating that ‘wi likkle but wi tallawah’,” Ambassador Marks said.

 

The late David “Wagga” Hunt was a distinguished past student of Kingston College; co-founder of Meadhaven United Football Club; former General Secretary of the Kingston & St. Andrew Football Association (KSAFA); former General Secretary of the Minor

 

League Football Association, and one of Jamaica’s foremost track-and-field analysts, who also had a great passion for youth and sports. Mr. Hunt led Calabar to both the Manning Cup and Oliver Shield titles in 2005.

 

CAPTION: Jamaica’s Ambassador to the United States, Her Excellency Audrey Marks (left, front row) presents the 2018 David “Wagga” Hunt Distinguished Award to Dr. Kevin Asher (centre, front row), the father of Chinyelu Asher, a member of Jamaica’s senior football women’s team, at the David “Wagga” Hunt Scholarship Fundraising Gala, held on Saturday, January 19 in Washington DC. Others in the photo are members of the organising committee of the David “Wagga” Hunt Scholarship Fund.