OVER the past few weeks, and especially over the past few days, there have been announcements of schools across the country being constructed, reconstructed, or commissioned.

The opening of these schools, in part, is meant to end overcrowding woes and respond to the growing population’s needs. Additionally, constructing more secondary schools is part of a plan to inch Guyana closer to universal secondary education by guaranteeing that each student can access a secondary school and attend classes and get a sound secondary education. And, of course, building some of the schools comes out of a need to reconstruct facilities that have, unfortunately, been destroyed by fire over the past few years.

Building more schools is not an all-encompassing solution, though. And I don’t believe anybody thinks it is, but it’s worth stating for the record’s sake.

Recently, I travelled to Karisparu, a Region Eight community deep in the Parakaraimas. It is a small community with no cellular or internet connectivity. It does not have a secondary school, and several villagers complained about not having enough trained teachers. So what happens in Karisparu, like other far-flung, sparsely-populated communities in Region Eight, is that the children go off to Mahdia (Region Eight’s capital town) for their secondary education.

Let’s say a secondary school was constructed in Karisparu. I think it is obvious that this school alone wouldn’t solve the challenges that exist there. There is still a need for more resources, be it internet connectivity or trained teachers. Training teachers, in particular, is an integral part of improving access to education and the quality of education received. For years, there have been complaints of far-flung communities like Karisparu being without adequately trained teachers. This isn’t to discredit the contributions of teachers who aren’t adequately trained, but it is reasonable to accept that children will benefit more if their teachers are trained.

Based on reports, efforts are underway to train more teachers locally. Age-old systems have been changed- benefitting from an infusion of technology- to allow more teachers (and potential teachers) to get training. It has been highlighted that the goal is to get all teachers trained by 2025. And I believe with the right incentives, these adequately trained teachers will return to those same underserved communities and provide the services so badly needed. This isn’t meant to give a gold star to the Ministry of Education, but I do believe that several positive things are happening. And that’s great for us all.

Still, the data nerd in me yearns for better analyses (and, in some cases, any analysis at all) on the effectiveness of the solutions being implemented.

In the first instance, it allows us to understand the gravity of the situation we are confronted by in real figures. For example, how many learners have been affected by overcrowded schools? How many of them saw declines in their academic performance and/or participation in extracurricular activities? What is the correlation between overcrowding and learners’ engagement in the classroom?

Then, such analyses could inform how we implement solutions going forward. I am curious about the impact on a child’s socialisation when moving from an overcrowded but familiar school to a less crowded but newer facility; what additional support should be provided to aid the transition? Also, to what extent does a child’s learning experience improve when engaged in a less-populated classroom? How are teachers’ engagements with their children improved when they teach in these smaller (for clarity: less populated) settings?

I know we can assume the answers to many of these questions, but I don’t think we can go wrong (or at least we may be less likely to go wrong) with an evidence-based approach. So I’d love to see more of these assessments and analyses too. And if they are already being done, I think publicising those findings could help generate buy-in from the public; at least I know I would be more interested if I could see those findings.

Before I end this column, I think it is important to reflect on the absolute tragedy recently at the female dormitory of the Mahdia Secondary School. That tragedy should offer us all lessons on the importance of safety and accountability. No matter how well-meaning, new ventures should be scrutinised to guarantee that they function as they should.

If you would like to connect with me to discuss the column or any of my previous work, please feel free to email me at: vish14ragobeer@gmail.com