President on fact-finding tour of CPCE
President David Granger addresses students and staff of CPCE
President David Granger addresses students and staff of CPCE

PRESIDENT David Granger on Wednesday met with students and staff of the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) as he continues his outreach to educational institutions in what he calls fact-finding missions, to hear from the administrators and beneficiaries directly even as Government zeroes in on modernising and reforming the educational sector.
The Head-of-State explained to students and instructors at the college that his administration recognises the importance of these consultations. Joined by the Minister of Education, Ms. Nicolette Henry, during the visit, the President said that he acknowledges that much more needs to be done to ensure that the CPCE is better equipped to effectively train the nation’s teachers but the input of qualified stakeholders in the reform process is needed. “From what I can hear this afternoon, there must be more conversations; there must be more deliberations among the people who are in the system. It is not a boardroom decision; it is not an academic decision that we can just sit in an office and make rules,” he said.

Ms. Gabriella Cummings directs a question to President David Granger during the interactive session

President Granger also said that he will make the results of the recently-completed report on the Commission of Inquiry (COI) into the education sector available to the institution so that it can study its findings and add to its content. The forum was highly interactive as it allowed for both staff and students of the institution to speak freely on issues that are affecting them. CPCE’s Vice-Principal for Curriculum and Instruction, Ms. Paula Monforte said that as the Ministry of Education works to reform the sector, they should seek the knowledge, expertise and buy-in of people, who are specialists in the system. “We are directed to implement and make changes with things that we know will not work and I am asking that our country gets to a place where people listen to us as professionals. We are highly criticised for what is happening out there because we were asked to do what we were asked to do… We need people, who were trained in their field and who can bring to the table richness for improvement and success in teaching at this College,” she said.
President Granger explained this is precisely why he has embarked on a process to engage with key stakeholders in the sector as he looks to improve what the state offers to the country’s youth. Thus far, he has already visited the New Opportunity Corps and the Kuru Kuru Training Centre. “We cannot sit in the boardroom and make rules… I haven’t come to lecture to you. I have come to listen to you and to learn about some of your problems so that we can solve those problems. This is not an ornamental visit; it is not a ceremonial visit. It is a very functional visit as far as I am concerned,” he said. He added that change is continuous and as such, all stakeholders need to remain engaged so as to swiftly address problems as they arise.

Improvement in English Language
Meanwhile, Regional Education Officer for East Berbice Corentyne (Region Six), Ms. Shafiran Bhajan stressed that much more work needs to be done to improve results in the English courses at the College. She noted that there have been complaints that graduate teachers are still making grammatical errors in their speech and their writing. Another member of staff, Mr. Romeo McAdam explained that students must be encouraged to do more oral work which will improve their capacity to better express themselves. President Granger reminded that Guyanese children do not speak what is considered Standard English at home; while for others, English is a second language. He added that all of these peculiarities must be taken into account in the teaching process. “We have to understand that children are coming with different backgrounds and unless we can communicate with them effectively, we will not be able to bring them up to that standard,” he said. (Ministry of the Presidency)

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