THE Ministry of Education, in collaboration with its sponsor, the International Labour Organisation (ILO), conducted a one-day workshop in Berbice yesterday. The workshop was held at the St. Aloysius Primary School, Garrison Road, New Amsterdam, Berbice, where the aim was to sharpen the skills of parents, following the unsatisfactory attendance of their children at schools.
Chief School Welfare Officer Carol Johnson-Melville said the monthly reports received from the various learning institutions across the country have highlighted increased absenteeism.
She said the commonality amongst the causes are parental neglect, sibling run homes, truancy and poverty.
Johnson-Melville said, consequently, a decision was made, by the Ministry, to go to the various Regions, primarily to educate parents on their roles through the Parent Education Programme.
The course, which also targeted teachers from Berbice High School, All Saints Primary, Vryman’s Erven Secondary and Vryman’s Erven Annex, as well as St. Aloysius Primary, was also facilitated by Guidance and Counselling Officers Wendy Collins, Mercylene Moses (Snr) and Berbice based welfare officers Alfa Mohammed and Dinesh (only name given), who addressed topics such as understanding self and parental skills.

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Johnson-Melville said the objective of the exercise was to instill preventative methods so that the child can be a full beneficiary of his/her period of compulsory education.
She told the Guyana Chronicle that, while there are instances of teenage pregnancy which may result in young girls being, temporarily, removed from the classroom, efforts are being made to have the young mothers reintegrated into the school system.
“We are not encouraging teenage pregnancy but we will have them returned to the school they previously attended or, if needs be, transferred to another where they can be monitored during their remaining period of schooling,” Johnson-Melville said.
Meanwhile, ILO National Project Coordinator Sharon Patterson said the goal of her agency’s input is to reduce poverty through education and skills training.
As a result of Education Ministry proposals, several day camps in the Democratic Regions were scheduled and students achieving less that 45 percent of their respective course work were targeted.