to help their indigenous learners stay on course

THREE trained hinterland teachers with years of specialised experience under their collective belt have come together to launch a novel education programme, in the hope of improving the academic performance of learners in their charge.

The group is headed by Father Joel Thompson, who serves as Assistant Parish Priest of 14 communities in the Deep-South Rupununi, and holds an MSc in Environment and Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science among other qualifications.

Other members of the team are Ms. Medino Felician Abraham, who teaches in Aishalton, an indigenous community in south Rupununi, and Ms. Maureen Aguilar, who is the headteacher of Maruranau Nursery, a pilot school for the introduction of the Quality Bilingual Education Programme (QBEP) here in Guyana.

Speaking with the Guyana Chronicle about the merits of the project, Father Thompson, who is one of its architects, said:
“It was officially launched on September 1, 2018… in a partnership with the Ministry of Education, the communities of the south Rupununi, and the Jesuits in Guyana. The current education programme builds on earlier efforts by the Wapichan People to revitalise their language, and to promote literacy in the South Rupununi.
“The objective of having such a programme in place is to improve the academic performance of students in the hinterland, while affirming their culture and language. We have noticed over the past five years that children have become more confident in speaking in both Wapichan and English in school. We have also noticed an increased interest in reading, since our story books are bilingual, and use elements from daily life in the Rupununi.

“Another impact is that parents seem to be taking a greater interest in their children’s education, and feel that they are able to share their wisdom with them.”

Among the main beneficiaries of the programme, Father Thompson said, have been nursery school children in Maruranau, Sawariwau, and Karaudaranau. “Teachers have also appreciated learning about the intercultural inquiry-based approach,” he said, adding: “An intercultural approach encourages students to embrace and share their cultural heritage, while appreciating, learning about, and respecting the cultures of others. Inquiry-based learning places the child, not the teacher, at the centre of the learning process.”
He further explained that the programme will enter the primary level this September at Grade One, and he is hoping that it will enter Grade Two come September 2024, and that, in time, it will have been implemented in the later grades.

Father Thompson is of the opinion that it is better to light a candle, rather than curse the darkness, and that rather than talk about the shortcomings in the education system that learners in the hinterland are subject to, let us offer some helpful insights from a small community in the south Rupununi.
“The Wapichan People have made efforts to revitalise their language and promote literacy, which lends itself to the development of the current education programmes in south Rupununi,” Father Thompson said, adding:

“Between the period 2009-2011, grassroots levels identified the needs of the community, and the desire for a quality and culturally relevant education emerged as a priority, due to the sustained academic underperformance of children (particularly in Grade Six), and the slow loss of Indigenous languages and cultures in some communities.” (Dillon Goring)