THERE is a commonly-held belief that all the top schools in Guyana are in the Capital City, Georgetown. On the surface that statement appears to be true, largely because most of the top primary and secondary schools are in Georgetown. However, there are many outstanding primary and secondary schools in the countryside which have produced top students at both the National Grade Six Assessments (NGSA) and the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate Examinations (CSEC).
All cannot be mentioned here, but in the primary level, Graham’s Hall on the East Coast of Demerara and C.V. Nunes in Anna Regina, Essequibo Coast, Region Two, stand out while the Anna Regina (Multilateral) Secondary also on the Essequibo Coast and New Amsterdam (Multilateral) Secondary and Berbice High School, Region Six, and West Demerara Secondary, Region Three, immediately come to mind.

There are several reasons why they are not well-known as those in Georgetown but chief among them could be due to the fact that Georgetown happens to be the centre of business and commercial life and the media tend to be consumed by events that occur in the City.
But while all the top schools are not in Georgetown, the top schools and other schools in Georgetown tend to perform better than their counterparts in the countryside.
One would invariably ask the question ‘why?’ And the answer seems to be one that is rather straightforward. The schools in Georgetown tend to be better resourced that those in the countryside and outlying regions. Better resources naturally would contribute to better performance. And this is an area that the Ministry of Education should devote attention to fixing to ensure equity in quality education delivery. The Ministry of Education, under the vibrant leadership of Minister Priya Manickchand, is taking progressive steps in this direction.

The US$4.7 million Westminster Secondary School in Region Three that is slated for completion this month-end is testimony of her efforts to bridge the gap in the delivery of quality education that exist between schools in Georgetown and those outside the City.
Based on media reports, the features of the soon-to-be-commissioned secondary school are strikingly impressive – elevator, multipurpose hall, music room, dance studio and physics, chemistry and biology laboratories.
These features speak to a modern secondary school not only in terms of physical infrastructure but also in content delivery, and, given the fact that the school is outside of Georgetown, kudos must be given to our education planners for moving in the direction of creating a level playing field.

An impressive standout at the state-of-the-art school are the facilities for music and dance. Too often, the approach to education has been mainly along the line of academics, with little or no attention on developing the creative abilities of students.
Though same cannot be said about Physical Education , there is a feeling that it is not given due attention in all schools. Sports and the performing arts, coupled with academic learning help to create rounded learners in the school system.

This aside, they collectively contribute to an enriching experience for the learners during their school years, and also play a significant role in building their self-confidence, self-esteem as well as their interpersonal and communication skills.
Minister Manickchand was on point when, on a visit to the Westminster Secondary School on Thursday she remarked, “This will be a game changer for us” and it was most refreshing to hear when she stated that: “It’s going to be a school that will be used as a model to show that once there are resources and trained teachers, children from anywhere can do well.”
More schools of this kind are needed in all the rural and outlying regions and it would be also great if the ministry could simultaneously place attention on low-performing schools to bring them up to a level where they too could produce ‘high-flying’ learners.