-some 300 applicants who did not satisfy entry requirements to be upgraded
THE Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) has so far received  a record breaking 1,500 applications for the new academic programme beginning September, as the average number has been 900 over the years. This number is expected to further increase as the college has extended the application deadline to this month end.
Education Minister Shaik Baksh has said that some 300 of the applicants who applied to the college but did not satisfy all the entry requirements will be enlisted to undergo remediation programme(s) in either English or Mathematics or both of the subjects.
Baksh who was at the time addressing a group of volunteers at the college also disclosed that of the total number of applicants only about 500 have met all the entry requirements.
According to data from CPCE, some 190 of the applicants are males but only 72 are qualified and about 300 persons have applied for the pre-service mode of which 55 are males. The remaining applicants are interested in pursuing the in-service programme.  The average annual intake at the college including its 14 satellite centres is about 600 students.
He called on those applicants who did not gain entry into the college to exercise patience as they will be given preference next year once they have upgraded themselves.
Baksh pointed out that his Ministry is looking to establish regional centres to upgrade these applicants who have a vested interest in educating the nation’s children.
He also stressed that males will be targeted in this intervention in keeping with the objectives of a national campaign to encourage more males in the system to ensure a gender balance in the profession.
The minister told the 40 volunteers who recently completed a three-week orientation programme designed to prepare them to serve in the hinterland regions to use their spare time to upgrade themselves academically to qualify for entry into the teachers’ training college next year.
He said his Ministry will be looking at their needs and they will be provided with distance package(s) in Mathematics or English or both subjects free of cost as well as the services of a tutor from National Centre for Education Resource Development (NCERD) to guide them in their studies.
“We want to take care of you, to mould you and to give you an opportunity to not only fulfill the vision of the National Teachers’ Volunteer programme but also prepare you for career of lifelong learning,” Baksh said.
This development, he said is part of a wider programme on teacher education and training reform geared to produce more quality teachers in the school system and to enhance students’ performance.
The Ministry of Education is moving in this direction to avoid being left behind in terms of standards and quality compared with other sister CARICOM states.
The college from September will be introducing an Associate’s Degree in Education (ADE), replacing the Trained Teachers’ Certificate Programme.
The ADE significantly reduces the study duration for a teacher to obtain a Trained Teacher’s Certificate and a Bachelor’s Degree in Education.
Students who successfully complete the Associate Degree in Education will only have to study for two years at the University of Guyana (UG) to obtain a Bachelor’s Degree in Education.
In essence, with the new programme on board, a teacher can become a trained graduate in four years, unlike under the previous programme where this process required seven years behind the books-three years at CPCE and four years at UG.
Baksh underlined too that quality teachers, produce quality students and plans are in place to ensure that lecturers with first degrees at the college acquire their Master’s Degree.
He stated that there must be a paradigm shift in the delivery of education at the college which must include a redesign of the curriculum to de-emphasize knowledge content which leads to cramming and regurgitation.
The new curriculum design and delivery methodology, he articulated among other things must emphasize processing, problem solving, developmental, technical, communication, reasoning and interpersonal skills.
The minister said also that the Information Technology laboratory at the college will be fully equipped and modernised to meet the standard requirements of a teachers’ training institution and every teacher who leaves the college will be able to use the computer as a teaching and learning tool.