North Georgetown Primary model recommended for schools improvement
NORTH Georgetown Primary School has opened a computer laboratory, reading and research centre and tuck shop, all to improve pupils’ performance and meet some of the day-to-day expenses of the institution. Education Minister Shaik Baksh, speaking at the recent opening of the facilities, commended the Headmistress. Ms. Yvette Williams, for her efforts and said the initiatives should be replicated at all schools.
Williams expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Education for donating the computers and said a six weeks period will be dedicated to train every teacher to use the system as a teaching and learning tool.
She noted that the total cost of the projects, $1.2M, exceeded the amount allocated in the School Improvement Plan and praised the Parent/Teachers Association (PTA) for its contribution to making the initiatives a reality.
The projects were executed mainly through funding from the School Improvement Project and some assistance from the PTA, a release said.  
It said the tuck shop, which will be operated by the PTA, would sell, primarily, stationery and the aim is to use the proceeds for making the school financially self-sufficient.
The release said Baksh also lauded the PTA involvement to improve operations at the school and appealed to parents to pay closer interest in their children’s education.
The state-of-the-art computer laboratory, with 13 systems, will, significantly, help to aid and stimulate learning through the ‘Jolly Phonics’ and ‘Success Maker’ programmes, the release said.
It said Baksh announced that his ministry is working to equip 200 primary schools with computer laboratories and computers by 2013 and, to date, 60 have been furnished with those facilities and another 40 will be received this year.
The release said the developments are in keeping with the Ministry’s broader objective to ensure every teacher in the school system is computer literate and the technology is used as a tool to enhance education delivery.

Literacy standard
North Georgetown Primary was also highly praised by the Minister for establishing an impressive reading and research centre geared to bolster the literacy standard there.
Baksh declared that the reading centre was less flattering to schools without one and said their headteachers should be ashamed of themselves.
He emphasised the need for pupils to grasp the basic concepts in literacy at the primary level, noting that this will avoid a spillover of deficiencies to the secondary level and, in that context, undertook to make a books donation to the school to boost its existing library stock.
Principal Education Officer (Georgetown), Mr. Marcel Hutson, who also attended the function, emphasised that, for schools to function effectively, their headteachers must have a school improvement plan like the North Georgetown Primary model.
He said, often, schools with such plans perform better and he remarked that the commissioning at North Georgetown was at an opportune time when the Ministry of Education is making every effort to improve learners’ outcome at primary schools.
Under the Schools Improvement Initiative, support is given to all schools with particular attention to primary schools, in developing School Improvement Plans. Grants of $1M are made to individual schools to improve their physical environment and, so far, 223 of them have become beneficiaries, the Ministry said.