CONGRATULATIONS to all those pupils who sat the National Grade Six Assessment this year and would be receiving their results, beginning today.

Each and every one of us has succeeded in a complex world fraught with negative influences, socio-economic challenges in both the household as well as society, and an imperfect education system. It took steadfastness and determination to persevere, and that determination would have also been impacted by peers, teachers, parents and other positive influences. This newspaper sees each and every student as a success, with the world as their oyster to create their own endless possibilities and opportunities.

Special congratulations to the top students who would be revealed later today. Our information is that the top 10 students reflect a good mixture of pupils from both the public as well as the private schools. The Ministry of Education will make known today also the statistics, including national percentage and per subject. President David Granger is on record as saying that teachers must be the nation’s highest-paid public servants. And this statement is indicative of the premium the nation’s Head of Government places on education in the country’s developmental thrust.

Making this possible requires a meeting of minds between policymakers and planners to address, in a holistic manner, various aspects of education. Government no doubt continues to place major emphasis on the education system.

In assessing Guyana’s children’s educational requirements, President Granger did not sit in an office and do guesswork; he went into the fields and met the people. He spoke to parents, and he observed conditions on the ground. The result was a tailored educational agenda that the Ministry of Education was tasked with effecting. The results speak for themselves.

The 5Bs initiative was launched by President Granger after he visited the Pomeroon in July 2015. During his interactions with residents there, the president learnt that transportation was often costly for children to get to and from school; many families could not afford it. Additionally, because of widespread, extreme poverty, many parents could not afford to purchase books for their children. Even more discouraging was the fact that many children had to stay at home because their parents could not afford proper meals.

The president decided to take action by introducing the programme to distribute the 5Bs – which stands for boats, buses, bicycles, breakfast and books – directly to households and communities across Guyana, beginning in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam). As a result, the riverine communities within that region were among the first to benefit from the initiative, with the delivery of three boats to transport children to and from school along the Pomeroon River.
The programme has since been expanded to include all ten of the country’s administrative regions. To date, more than 1,400 bicycles, 10 boats, and 30 buses have been handed over to students and communities across Guyana. The ‘Breakfast’ and ‘Books’ aspects of the programme have also been introduced in numerous schools.

The president recognizes, too, that technical or vocational education is essential for national progress. The skilled citizens who are required to build a prosperous nation are not limited to doctors and lawyers. International agencies agree. According to the World Bank’s 2019 World Development Report on the future of work, “Flexibility between general and vocational [or technical] education, particularly in higher education, is imperative to enable workers to compete in changing labour markets, where technology plays an increasingly important role.” The importance of technical and vocational educational training (TVET) is recognised, too, by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). In fact, TVET is one of the three sub-sectors of UNESCO, the other two being literacy and higher education.

Guyana’s government understands the importance of having skilled craftsmen and women, and TVET is an integral part of the administration’s educational focus. TVET is a major aspect of Guyana’s Education Sector Plan (ESP), in which the government has invested $214B. The plan’s objective is the improvement of the quality of education by placing greater emphasis on accountability through the continuous monitoring of results throughout the plan’s active period.

Government’s investment is already showing positive results. For example, in November of last year, 123 students graduated from the New Amsterdam Technical Institute (NATI). This development followed the graduation of 144 students who received their diplomas from the Essequibo Technical Institute earlier that month. Those persons, along with others who have completed their technical education, have rightfully earned our respect, and are to be congratulated. Those graduates are now qualified in the areas of data operations, office administration, electrical installation, commerce, welding, engine repair, furniture manufacturing, agricultural machinery, metal machining, electronics, masonry, plumbing, bricklaying, and carpentry, among other skills.

Additionally, the government, in collaboration with local and overseas-based Guyanese, has thrown its weight behind one of the most visionary programmes to have ever been conceived: The Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Initiative. The STEM Initiative encourages elementary and middle-school students to pursue computer science, particularly computer programming, by introducing them to Code Logic. As the STEM programme continues to grow, expand, and diversify, there are now practical training programmes in physics, chemistry, integrated science and information technology among other science subjects. With a core focus on developing practical programming, robotics, and scientific skills, the programme is preparing our youth, in all Guyana’s regions, to lead Guyana into the new technological era.

It should be said that when education is seen through holistic lenses, it will factor in the diverse abilities and preferences of students, and put systems in place to meet the various talents and potentials. Where development takes a holistic approach, it would factor in the truism that one size does not fit all. The establishment of community high schools was aimed at educating students that are more technically inclined, and at meeting an aspect of the nation’s human capital diversity. That this form of education was disbanded without similar replacement is not only tantamount to throwing out the baby with the bath water, but denying those so inclined, or interested, the needed opportunities.

There is a need for labour from the least to the most skilled, and for students that are interested, motivated and alert. Where a society looks at increasing life expectancy as part of the developmental agenda, education should continue to factor in health and wellness as key part of the curriculum. It should not be lost on society that the high achievers have attributed extra-curricular and physical activities as part of their intellectual regimen.

Our teachers are vital to education delivery, and any developmental strategy must factor in giving them the deserving attention, not merely to ensure they are being equipped with the knowledge and facilities to teach, but also examining incentive schemes that will attract and retain a professional corps that is second to none.

The issue of duty-free motor vehicles for head teachers can see the pool expanding to other teachers, inclusive of looking at motorcycles, lower motor vehicle cylinder capacity, and aiding in the provision of access to affordable payment plans.

It takes a village to raise a child, borrowing from the Ghanaian proverb, and here is where, outside of the policymakers, teachers and the staff in the education system, the parent and community have their roles. Parent Teachers Associations need the technical support in examining and understanding why this critical partnership in the child’s development is no longer seen and/or treated with deserving seriousness, and thereafter systems put in place to correct the anomaly.

Education forms the bedrock in the development of every society, and we have to get it right with our education system. And this requires approaching education frontally, making the needed investments that would always factor in what the nation intends to be the desired results. Our children live and act out what they see and learn, and where any child is so denied, work had to be done. The celebration for those who have reached this far must also see efforts being put in place to bring within those from out of the fold, thereby leaving none out from the yearly celebration, recognition and accolades.