Nagamootoo touts ‘all-inclusive institute of arts’

AN all-inclusive institute of arts will soon be added to the country’s education sector, acting President and Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo has announced.
The announcement was made on Friday during his feature address to awardees of the Ministry of Education’s National Award Ceremony at the National Cultural Centre.
‘Integrated education’ is what will be offered to ensure an inclusive, rounded education for Guyana’s students.
“… I look forward to the day where the Minister of Education will cut the ribbons to a new institute – all-inclusive institute of arts, fine arts in Guyana… A museum (is) also to be attached to the fine arts (division) and I understand that this is something on the agenda of the Ministry of Education,” Nagamootoo stated.
He said it is all in government’s plan to offer an integrated education of art and culture, which will include fine arts, dance, sculpting, painting and architecture, among other subject areas, all of which “would help to strengthen the quality of education and to make education all-inclusive… We need to have an inclusive, rounded education.”
MUSIC IN EVERY SCHOOL
The acting President said too that it is government’s desire that children be taught national patriotic songs, and that music is taught in every school across the country.
While this will help students develop a sense of patriotism and a deeper love for their country, he told students that they must love the nation which has given them worth.
“We are nothing without a conviction of love of our country. It is our country that moulds and brings us up into citizens of worth in the world. And therefore it is our music, it is the sport that is introduced in schools to give you time off from concentrated studies… (and which) will add to your character.”
He said though a rich academic education is key, there are some who have become recognised for their muscular skill. He noted that while on a recent visit to the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, he was asked about Guyanese international cricketers Alvin Kallicharran and Shivnarine Chanderpaul instead of the country’s great politicians.
“They are from Guyana and they are known in the world because they excelled in the muscular art of cricket. They became artistes in the field of sports.”

DREAM KILLERS
Nagamootoo charged the students to always maintain their honesty and integrity, and to avoid criminal activities which are dream killers.
“There is nothing more worthy of recognition than honesty, than integrity. Whatever you do, if you choose to pursue the path of work or the path of academia, you must stand up for somethings you believe in… even if you are the only one standing, you must always stand [up] for principles that would touch and influence not only your lives, but others around you,” he remarked.
The dreams of many have been killed behind iron gates because they chose what they consider to be an easy path for life, said Nagamootoo who noted that, “(It is) the path that would lead you to earn a livelihood off other people’s sweat and labour, the path that leads you not to the broad highway of a new glorified future, (but) leads you to a dead end of prisons, of hard labour and confinement and to the death of your dreams.”
Instead, he urged the awardees to look to the skies and identify themselves among stars. “Keep going forward, keep making waves, keep achieving, keep adding to your great achievements so far… keep the flag of Guyana flying in whatever you do, wherever you go, we’ll be proud of you once you embrace your country with love and commitment… That is for me the finite aspect of ambition that your education has imbued you with certain craving … your ambition is to shine and to excel and to be on top of the world,” he added.
MATHEMATICS
Meanwhile, the acting President expressed disappointment that many students failed to reach the mark of excellence, especially in the area of mathematics; the key to opening wide the door of science and technology here. Guyana, he said, must understand the importance of mathematics in its drive for development in the sciences.
“The countries moving forward today are those that have chosen to adopt science and technology within the education system, and we must have it right. We cannot fall back, and we cannot lag in the areas of mathematics, generally in the area of science and technology,” he said.
Guyana’s education situation needs a critical evaluation to investigate why there is little success in the subject of mathematics. “…Those who study mathematics for example, they do not graduate in the same numbers as in other subjects… Mathematics is key to opening the door to the world of science and technology, as also with the information [and] communication area,” Nagamootoo stated.
He hailed the recipients of awards, who excelled at the National Grade Six Assessment Examinations (NGSA), Caribbean Secondary Examination Certificate (CSEC), Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE), Guyana Technical Education Examination (GTEE), Carnegie School of Home Economics (CSHE) and the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE), as “new exemplars of our nation.”

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