JIS: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, says the education sector has been undergoing a transformation process to make it more practical, relevant and flexible in response to the critical needs of industry.

 

“It is imperative that leaders in the public education system keep themselves updated on the new directions in education and training across the globe, and are themselves flexible enough to be change agents and are committed to enabling those they supervise and manage to be integral in the process,” he said.

 

The Minister was speaking at the Management Institute for National Development (MIND) Regional Leadership Development Conference for public sector leaders, at the Pegasus Hotel, on July 19.

 

Senator Reid noted that in the past decade, almost every institution or firm has had to transform how they are organised and operate, taking into account the speed and content of information flow.

 

He argued that within such scenarios, an adaptive leader must be sensitive to reading the signals from below and be prepared to act on them within reasonable time.

 

“The education sector has multiple layers of interests and thousands of stakeholders. Its leaders at various levels have to communicate their vision and their expectation, as well as national and institutional policies and seek to get others to support them. It is a big challenge,” Senator Reid said.

 

The Minister added that a leader should be willing to be adaptive, while at the same time be committed to fair play.

 

“Everyone should know the principles that guide decisions and be aware of institutional policy. Not everyone will support a decision, but there should be no confusion about how that decision was reached,” Mr. Reid said.

 

He emphasised that a leader must operate with integrity and credibility, noting that failure in this area undermines everything else.

 

He also noted that a leader must be willing to be retrained and must be committed to capacity building and “helping the team to develop on individual strengths for the greater good of the organisation.”

 

The two-day conference is being held under the theme: ‘Adaptive Public Sector Leadership, Changing MINDsets, Challenging Assumptions, Creating Transformation’.

 

GLEANER: The Government will be seeking to implement a number of programmes, in partner-ship with Japanese educational institutions, as part of an integrated approach to safety and security in the local school curriculum.

 

Addressing yesterday’s post Cabinet media briefing at Jamaica House, Education Minister Ruel Reid announced that partnerships have been established with universities and high schools in Japan for the development and offering of programmes on disaster science and green engineering, as well for the setting up of a new science school in the island.

 

“This approach will be utilised to engage students to learn strategies for disaster management. This approach will also demonstrate the right strategies they would use to protect themselves and their families,” Reid said.

 

The minister added that the partnerships with the Japanese institutions would ensure that Jamaicans have a wide knowledge of strategies to use, in the event of a disaster, after noting how Japan utilises those approaches within its schools.

 

“What Japan is doing could be utilised across the world globally, and so we have integrated this within our school curriculum so we can utilise appropriately,” he said.

 

Reid stated that this was another important aspect for the development and improvement of schools within Jamaica.

 

– Delion Bowes

 

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

JIS: For as long as he can remember, Yohan Smith has wanted to join the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) and become a “good soldier” like his father.

 

“I see my father as a successful member of the JDF and I would love to follow in his footsteps and have a successful career myself,” he tells JIS News.

 

The young man from Linstead, St. Catherine, is taking the first step in fulfilling his lifelong dream. He was among the first batch of 250 recruits for the National Service Corps (NSC) programme.

 

The brainchild of Prime Minister the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, the NSC aims to create an avenue for young people, ages 18 to 23, to be fully empowered through national service.

 

Over a one-year period, the youngsters will undergo a modified version of the JDF’s traditional basic military training and receive on-the-job instruction in various aspects of the JDF’s operations such as the Coast Guard, Air Wing and engineering.

 

They will also benefit from vocational and life skills training.

 

Upon completion, the participants will be given the opportunity to continue on as soldiers in the JDF or join the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), Department of Correctional Services or become security guards.

 

The NSC recruits will be remunerated accordingly, be separate in identity and fully provided for in law.

 

Yohan tells JIS News that he heard about the programme through friends and after further research on the Internet he decided to sign up.

 

He says he is pleased with the opportunity provided for skills training. “I am glad to be a part of it. It’s a wonderful initiative and I want to be a part of the change that everybody talks about,” he adds.

 

Another participant, Christopher Golding from Bog Walk, says he heard about the programme while applying for the regular JDF corps.

 

“There’s a lot of opportunity there. You get to learn a lot of skills and gain knowledge. This is a good step for me,” he notes.

 

Jaydon Coombs of Hope Bay, Portland, says at the end of the training he hopes to be selected for the JDF.

 

“I have loved the army since I was a little boy. I decided to apply for this programme because of the skills it offers that will help me in the future. It will help me if I leave the army, I have the skills to pursue another career,” he points out.

 

Speaking in an interview with JIS News, Media Affairs Officer at the JDF, Lieutenant Aaron Gabriel, explains that interested persons will have to fulfil the requisite medical requirements and pass an entrance test to participate in the programme.

 

“We require that the (persons) be free from any disability. They must have perfect vision, not colour blind, they don’t have any asthma or any other ailments that may prevent them from being able to go through the rigours of training,” he informs.

 

Lt. Gabriel notes that the aim is to train 1,000 persons per year, with 250 persons per cohort.

 

“While the first cohort is in training, recruitment is going on for the second cohort. So at any point in time, we would have at least two cohorts in training. The JDF is always recruiting. If someone wants to apply, they can go to our website which is www.jdfweb.com and just click on the link that says join the JDF,” Lt. Gabriel points out.

 

He informs that the training provided under the NSC programme is broken down into three phases.

 

During phase one, participants will undergo basic military training such as first aid, foot drill, military tactics and land navigation. Recruits will also be exposed to stress management, harassment training, conflict resolution and financial management.

 

“During the second phase of the training, they will be introduced to different employment opportunities within the JDF such as engineering, working at the Air Wing, working at the JDF Coast Guard. While they are doing this on-the-job training, they would be brought up to speed with technical skills required to operate within the areas,” Lt. Gabriel says.

 

“(For) the third phase, they would really be putting everything that they would have learned over the prior two phases into action and having a more hands-on experience within the force,” he explains.

 

Lt. Gabriel says the NSC can be seen as an avenue through which persons can provide direction in their life or serve their country.

 

“So, it is to take those persons who want some direction, give them some skills, give them something that when they have finished the training, they are able to make a meaningful contribution, maybe in some other public sector entity or possibly in the civilian world,” he notes.

 

“Ultimately, we want to take youngsters, give them some practical training and some work experience and then send those people back out into the world so they can have a better impact,” he adds.

 

The Prime Minister Holness, who spoke to the youngsters at Up Park Camp recently, said the success of the programme will depend on the participants.

 

“How you take on to training, how you take on to national service, how you maintain the discipline and high standards of the army, how you maintain the spirit of the army and how you give back to the society. This will determine whether or not the programme is a success,” he points out.

 

The NSC is part of the Learn, Earn, Give back and Save (LEGS) Programme, which aims to assist young people who, by virtue of their circumstances, have become unattached.

 

The programme falls under the Government’s Housing, Opportunity, Production and Employment (HOPE) initiative, targeting job and training opportunities for unattached young people.

 

CAPTION: The first group of 250 recruits, who will benefit from military, vocational and life skills training over a one-year period under the National Service Corps (NSC) Programme.

OBSERVER:  Some 900 primary level teachers from Jamaica, Belize and Barbados will be trained in best practices in Mathematics at an upcoming workshop hosted in Jamaica.

 

The event dubbed “Amazing Mathematics Powers (AMP)…PR1MED for Success”,  is being staged by The Book Merchant Limited in partnership with The Jamaica Teaching Council and Shortwood Teachers’ College,  and will be hosted at Shortwood Teachers’ College in St Andrew from August 21-24.

 

The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information has lauded Amazing Mathematics Powers as an innovative initiative “which is consistent with our efforts to improve teacher and teaching quality — a critical factor to improving student performance”.

 

Amazing Mathematics Powers will focus on best practices using the Education Ministry-approved PR1ME Mathematics programme which is based on the highly successful Singaporean method. 

 

Scholastic’s professional development specialist and lead PR1ME Mathematics trainer, Kelly Lim Kai Ling, will travel from Singapore to head the Mathematics sessions. 

 

Since 2014, some 2,000 primary school mathematics teachers, coaches, specialists in Jamaica and the Caribbean have been trained under this initiative.

 

 

GLEANER: It was an evening at the 2017 JET Programme, send-off reception, as is customary, where accolades poured, toasts were raised, and wishes heaped upon the eighteen youngsters who were due to depart to Japan, to begin their journey as assistant language teachers, (ALTs) on the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme.

 

The air of excitement and anticipation of what life would be like in an Asian culture, where the pace is slow, culture is deep rooted in spiritual manifestation, attention to detail is impeccable, and punctuality is measured in nanoseconds.

 

Started in Jamaica in 2000, JET’s popularity has been growing since its inception, almost 350 participants have gone to teach English at mostly public schools throughout Japan.

 

“This year, we received a total of 266 applications, and you are extremely fortunate to have this opportunity of being selected from among so many applicants,” said Masanori Nakano, ambassador of Japan to Jamaica. “I would like to congratulate you all again on becoming JET members and representing Jamaica.”

 

JET is a window and a gateway not only to teach, but to be one’s country’s cultural ambassadors and to expand one’s knowledge base.

 

“Lifechanging” and “enriching” are words used by all previous participants of the programme, who described their experiences in the Land of the Rising Sun.

 

 

 

Different Outlook On Life

 

 

Karen Bailey-Coleman, ALT in Kobe City, Hyogo, Japan, says that her experience in Japan has give her a different perspective onlife, both professionally and personally.

 

Growing up on Japanese television drama Oshin, aired on Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation in 1991, her dreams to travel to Oshin’s home was realised 13 years later in July 2004.

 

“My experiences have truly enhanced the course of my life and given me a deeper appreciation of my own Jamaican culture as a non-diplomat ‘ambassador at-large,” Bailey-Colemen said.

 

She returned to Jamaica in 2007, and almost 10 years later, she says that she is grateful that her experiences have gone a long way towards defining her as an individual.

 

“Each day in Japan was a day I spent investing in the growth of my students in understanding how to speak, listen, understand and communicate not only in the subject of English as a foreign language, but also the cultural aspects of Jamaica,” Bailey-Coleman said.

 

Marsha Dennie, who was in Tottori Prefecture from 2002-2005, said that she was nervous at first. “I was apprehensive about my new life,” she said. “Being a person with dark skin, I was worried that I would have trouble fitting in.”

 

But, she said, those fears were dissipated, and she was able to blend in and make memories in and out of the classroom.

 

“Some of the unforgettable memories that now flood my mind,” Dennie said, “were dressing up as Santa Claus and handing out Christmas presents to delighted kids; cooking Jamaican food for an appreciative group of locals.”

 

She sang Bob Marley’s song Three Little Birds with her students at the school festival; harvested sweet potatoes with a group of elementary school kids; climbed a mountain for the first time (Mt Daisen); wore a kimono; and participated in the many Japanese cultural events.

 

 

 

Culturally Aware

 

 

Dennie described her experience in Japan as one that has made her more confident, self-assured, tolerant, open-minded, and culturally aware than she ever was.

 

She is vice-president of Jamaica Japan Exchange Teachers Alumni Association (JJETAA), and she said it is her goal to strengthen the cultural bridge between Japan and Jamaica.

 

Nakano, in his address to the participants of the 2017 cohort, encouraged them to look beyond the classroom and embrace the holistic experience that they have been accorded.

 

“JET participants are encouraged to immerse themselves in the culture and, in return, share their rich heritage with students, teachers, and everyone with whom they come in contact,” he said. “This exchange and camaraderie create an invaluable bond between the two countries.”

 

For Sheena Jarrett, who was in Osaka from 2008 to 2013, it was a fulfilment, among other things, the dream of travelling to a foreign country and experiencing a culture that was very different from her own.

 

“You are compelled to step outside of your comfort zone and explore unchartered territories,” Jarrett said. “It hasn’t always been easy, but I have never regretted my decision.”

 

Bailey-Colemen said that living and working in a Japanese society in Kobe City gave her amazing opportunities to meet and maintain some lifelong mentors, mentees, friends, associates, and acquaintances. These, she said, were responsible for her all-round success as a “Jamaican’anese”.

 

“Each day in Japan was a day I spent investing in the growth of my students in understanding how to speak, listen, understand and communicate not only English as a Foreign Language, but also the cultural aspects of Jamaica,” she said. “I wouldn’t trade my Japan-related experiences for the world. Totemo Arigatou (I express my gratitude), Japan!”

 

“Anyone who has been on the programme will tell you that it’s not just a teaching job,” Jarrett said. “It is a life-altering experience.”

 

It is an embedded philosophy of Buddhism, one of Japan’s major religions, that “it is better to travel than arrive,” for life is a journey and we evolve each day we travel, we experience, we educate, and more important, we learn.

 

Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme

The Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme is a large-scale exchange programme administered by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, and the Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR) in Japan.

 

Through the JET Programme, people from participating countries are invited to Japan and are appointed to work as ALTs (assistant language teachers), CIRs (coordinators for international relations), or SEAs (sports exchange advisors) by local governments in Japan for one year (up to five years), note that Jamaicans can only apply for the ALT position at this moment.

 

The JET Programme aims to promote internationalisation in Japan’s local communities by improving foreign language education and developing international exchange at the community level by fostering ties between Japanese youth and foreign youth. The objectives of the programme are being achieved as JET Programme participants serve in local authorities as well as in public and private elementary, and junior and senior high schools in Japan.

 

The JET Programme started in 1987, and in 2016, there were 4,952 participants on the programme from 40 countries. There are currently 118 (as of July 2017) Jamaicans on the exchange programme bringing the total to 343 Jamaicans who have participated on the exchange programme since the year 2000. More information, can be had from http://jetprogramme.org/en/.

 

[email protected]

 

CAPTION: Japanese Ambassador to Jamaica, Masanori Nakano, (second right) with Dean-Roy Bernard, permanent secretary, Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, along with the 2017 selected Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme Participants at a Farewell Reception held in honour of the JET participants

JIS: Fifty children with various mental and physical disabilities have been equipped for primary-level studies, having successfully completed the Early Stimulation Programme’s (ESP) special intervention curriculum.

 

Of the number, 35 will move on to special education primary-level programmes, while 15 will matriculate to the regular school system.

 

At the annual graduation ceremony held on Wednesday (July 12) at the ESP Assessment Centre and Multipurpose Facility on Hanover Street, downtown Kingston, the young graduates were presented with certificates and lunch bags in preparation for the next stage of their education.

 

Director/Principal of the ESP, Antonica Gunter-Gayle, told JIS News that the programme has had a tremendous impact on the children, and expressed her pleasure at their successful advancement to primary-level education.

 

“We are very proud, because many of them, when they came to us, they were unable to do a number of ordinary tasks – feed themselves, sit, smile. But thanks to the special intervention provided through this programme, they now have the requisite skills to move on,” she noted.

 

“We focus on the cognitive, language, social, emotional and the fine and gross motor skills. We work with them in stages to reach their highest potential and to prepare them to acquire pre-readiness skills to move on to the primary level,” she added.

 

The ceremony was attended by family, friends and ESP staff; representatives from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the Early Childhood Commission (ECC), and partner agencies Guardian Life and Digicel Foundation; and Member of Parliament (MP) for Central Kingston, Rev. Ronald Thwaites.

 

Established in 1975, the ESP is a special intervention programme catering to children, up to six years old, who suffer from various disabilities.

 

Administered by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the programme forms part of the Government’s social safety net designed to assist the vulnerable and poor in society.

 

It serves more than 1,500 children through facilities in Kingston and a community-based rehabilitation programme in Portland.

 

The Hanover Street headquarters, which was upgraded by the Government through $87 million in funding from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), will enable the ESP to improve assessment and intervention services for children with disabilities.

 

CAPTION: Chairman of the Early Childhood Commission (ECC), Trisha Williams-Singh (left), and Chief Technical Officer in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Damion Cox, share a moment with valedictorian for the Early Stimulation Programme’s (ESP) 2017 Graduating Class, André Campbell. Occasion was the annual school-leaving exercise held on Wednesday (July 12) at the ESP’s new assessment centre and multipurpose facility located on Hanover Street in downtown Kingston.

JIS: Organisers of entertainment events are being urged to desist from placing posters and billboards with lewd material on premises housing educational institutions.

 

Director of the Safety and Security in Schools Programme, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Coleridge Minto, said persons continue to place posters with material that is not appropriate for children, at and near schools.

 

He is calling for responsible use of the nation’s educational facilities.

 

“Our schools must be places where our children can go for learning, and when they are not being used for teaching and learning, they are used for other activities that our communities can be proud of,” he said.

 

ASP Minto was delivering the keynote address at the awards ceremony for the Youth Gambling Prevention All-Island Poster Competition held on Tuesday (July 11) at RISE Life Management Services’ downtown Kingston offices.

 

As it relates to school safety and security, he informed that the Government has earmarked $100 million for the erection of fences at various institutions across the island.

 

He said there has been a reduction of break-ins at schools, and urged communities to do more to protect institutions.

 

The poster competition, organised by RISE Life, is part of activities aimed at preventing gambling among youth, and in particular school-age adolescents, by creating awareness of the dangers that underage gaming poses.

 

It was sponsored by the Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Commission (BGLC) and Supreme Ventures.

 

The Kingston-based Denham Town Primary School dominated the competition, taking the first- and second-place cash prizes of $20,000 and $10,000, respectively, plus trophies, with Immaculate Conception High in St. Andrew receiving a trophy and $7,500 for placing third.

 

Denham Town Primary School also placed fourth, eighth, and ninth and shared tenth place with Immaculate Conception High.

 

RISE Life Management Services operates the only gambling prevention, treatment, research and responsible gaming programme in the Caribbean, which has been in existence for over 11 years.

In order to gamble legally in Jamaica, persons must be 18 years and over. 

 

CAPTION: Director of the Safety and Security in Schools Programme, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Coleridge Minto (left), interacts with Shantae Dyer (2nd left) and Patrick Frater of the Kingston-based Denham Town Primary School, who shared the winning trophy and cash prize of $20,000 in the Youth Gambling Prevention All-Island Poster Competition organised by Rise Life Management Services. Looking on is Executive Director of the organisation, Sonita Abrahams. Occasion was the awards ceremony for the competition held on Tuesday (July 11), at Rise Life Management Services’ downtown Kingston offices.

JIS: Education, Youth and Information  Minister, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, says the Government will be installing Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) systems in secondary institutions shortly as part of a programme aimed at improving school safety and security.

 

“There are resources that we are going to make available…but one that I am very fascinated about…is a fulsome deployment of the CCTV network across our schools,” he said.

 

“We are going for the highest grade technology with analytical and artificial intelligence capabilities that will assist (schools) greatly, not only in identifying weapons that are being brought on the campuses, but even identifying students, who are high-risk.  Safety and security is the number one priority for the Ministry,” he noted.

 

Senator Reid was addressing the launch and inaugural conference of the National Association of Deans of Discipline (NADD), held at the Sunscape Resort in Montego Bay, St. James on Thursday (July 6) under the theme: ‘Enabling Education Through Discipline Safety and Security’.

 

He commended the deans of discipline for the work that they have been doing in maintaining peace and order in the nation’s schools.

 

He said the deans must work closely with guidance counsellors in the day-to-day monitoring and management of institutions.

 

“The deans of discipline have to be seen within the context of the overall management of the school,” he pointed out.

 

Senator Reid informed that the Ministry’s programme to boost school safety and security includes the fencing of  institutions whose premises remain open and are proving difficult to monitor.

 

CAPTION: Education, Youth and Information Minister, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, addresses the launch and inaugural conference of the National Association of Deans of Discipline (NADD), held at the Sunscape Resort in Montego Bay, St. James on Thursday, July 6.

 

JIS: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information has commenced the procurement process for literature texts and dictionaries as part of the Secondary Textbook programme under the National Textbook Loan Scheme (NTLS).

 

This is part of the Ministry’s commitment to promote the use of quality learning material at all levels of the education system by providing textbooks annually for students in primary and secondary schools.

 

In a bulletin issued by the Ministry, it was noted that there has been growing concern among parents and guardians about the cost of literature texts required by students.

 

These learning material will be supplied in the first instance to Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH) students only.

 

For the 2017-2018 school year, PATH students in grades seven, 10 and 11 will be provided with literature texts and dictionaries under the NTLS.

 

Meanwhile, the Ministry is reporting that the Supplementary Textbook lists for the new school year have been prepared.

 

School administrators are being reminded that in keeping with the Ministry’s principle of school-based management, they are required to exercise judgement in selecting the supplementary textbooks they deem most suitable from the lists.

 

They are being advised that in order to select the most appropriate textbooks, a textbook selection committee comprising a subject specialist at the secondary level and grade coordinator at both the primary and secondary levels should be established.

 

Members of the committee must examine the books to determine their suitability for the students’ needs.

 

The Approved Supplementary Primary and Secondary Textbook lists can be viewed on the Ministry’s website at http://www.moey.gov.jm.