– teachers share their experiences and advice

By Lisa Hamilton
THE COVID-19 pandemic has not only affected economies around the world but the education of millions of children globally. In Guyana, with schools closed since March 16, 2020, it is no different and many teachers are concerned about the interruption in classroom education.

The Guyana Chronicle spoke with over 14 teachers from around the country, who detailed how they’ve been keeping in contact with the students, and some of the advice they want to give at this time.  Headteacher at Plaisance Secondary School, Hermione Paddy, told the newspaper that one of the key areas she worries about is skills-training at her school which ended abruptly due to the pandemic. “I am worried because at Plaisance Secondary we just don’t prepare students for CXC but we also have another programme, the Secondary Competency Certificate Programme (SCCP), where the students at Grade 9 must complete their work before they can go on to Grade 10 and that’s a big bother to me because it’s a skills programme,” she explained.

Some students from Plaisance Secondary have been exposed to joinery and furniture making; catering and commercial food preparation and crops and soils, the latter which has somewhat affected their reaping of crops. Paddy also noted that while teachers at her school customarily work through the Easter holiday with students preparing for the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination, this too has been affected. “It’s kind of hard for the students because they would really have to double up,” she said. “They have lots of projects there to complete.”

Past papers
Since the closure of schools, the headteacher has been relaxing at home while enjoying quality time with her grandchildren. She also uses her time to send links to past CSEC papers to teachers and students. She also noted that there are cases whereby some children are indeed happy to be at school compared to their situations at home. “They miss school, they miss their classmates, they miss their teachers,” she said. Leaving a few words of advice, Paddy said: “Spend some quality time with your children, get to learn them, know them, this is the time when you need to do that. Even if you don’t know their work, you don’t understand what they’re doing, just sit with them and let them see that you’re interested in what they are doing.”

Over on the Essequibo Coast, Golden Fleece Year One teacher of the Fisher Nursery School, Genita Jawahirlall, said that since the closure of schools, she has been actively communicating with the parents of her class through a WhatsApp group created. She has been providing parents with advice on how they can continue the learning for their children and, on numerous occasions, she has also given encouragement to parents based on their complaints about their children’s behaviour. “During the past three weeks I have been in constant communication with parents trying to assist in providing meaningful suggestions to help the children. I have spoken to most of them and they said that [their children] really miss school and their teachers,” Jawahirlall said.

“My concern about school closure is that it has an impact on the children in the completion of their term/s curriculum. Also, the biggest constraint is that we don’t know for sure what duration schools will remain closed given the nature of the transmission of the virus. We must also weigh the actual benefits versus the consequences.”

Build capacity
She advises all parents to keep working with their children to build their capacity to ensure that, during this period without academic activity, they do not become dormant.  She also urged them to be safe and to wait until the Ministry of Public Health gives the directive to facilitate school once again. Jawahirlall has been using her personal free time to rejuvenate her mental and physical health while spending time with her immediate family. She has also been using the time to come up with interesting learning experiences to implement in the next term.

Teaching grades 8, 9, 10 and 11 at President’s College is Willon Cameron who told the newspaper that he is concerned about students who hail from hinterland areas. “I’m worried about them because of the lack of internet access. The rest of them have adjusted to the new strategies implemented by the teachers, but that’s only for the grade 11 students who are preparing for CSEC,” he said. “I would advise parents to use the time to bond with their kids whenever they can and, as for their school work, there are plenty of resources available online but if internet is a problem then maybe the kids can learn other skills like gardening.”

Grade Six Teacher at Rosignol Primary School, Onifa Arthur has been trying to remain positive while at home, by planting her own kitchen garden and relaxing with her family. On some days she really misses her class and the sounds of their laughter and amusement at learning something new. “At Grade Six, the amount of concepts the children need to master before being properly prepared for the exams is way too many for that short time, not even extra lessons are enough to get it all properly done. At this time there can’t be any gathering of children. I’m very shaken about what this year’s results would look like,” she said. Arthur understands the challenge parents now face too and pleads with them and all students to make use of every available means of education, until life returns to normal.

Mahindra Sharma, mathematics teacher of Grades 7, 9 and 11 at the Beterverwagting Secondary School, said that, as an on-the-go person, it has been challenging to stay home, but he makes up by communicating with his students via WhatsApp.

When it comes to the Grade 11 students expected to write CSEC this year, he has been assisting them in working past papers and makes small videos with steps to solve problems. However, he is still concerned about their learning as only about 50 per cent of the students participate. One challenge is that not all students have access to the internet while, for some, their data plan finishes very quickly. “While I am happy that my students are safe and indoors, I am very concerned about their exams being just approximately 2 months away. I am sure that some of them are not studying. We all know of those students who forget the book when they are out of school and those are the ones I am really concerned about,” he said.

“I wish to advise parents to take the necessary precautions to protect themselves and family from COVID 19. I urge pupils to make use of the Guyana Learning Channel, the educational games, YouTube videos and learn to do stuff in the home like cooking, sewing, etcetera.”

Other teachers who spoke with the newspaper noted that some children come from households where their parents cannot read or write and this too can be challenging. They’ve urged those parents to use visuals and audio through technology to help their children learn at their individual levels. Some other educators urged parents to use the crisis to teach their children how to be responsible individuals, and proper behaviour traits such as how to respect others as opposed to being bullies.  Mandatory study time each day has been advised by one teacher who noted that this will help children to remain in the constant state of learning. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education has urged persons to visit its website at education.gov.gy to access numerous resources and tips on how they can continue learning during the pandemic.