Science Education

Sep 25, 2008 Editorial

On the whole, the interest in studying the sciences – at all levels of our educational system – has been plummeting steadily since independence.

At that time, most of the very brightest students gravitated towards the science stream and, if the truth be told, the humanities were spoken of rather condescendingly.

Such an attitude augured well for a developing country such as ours that had infinite physical potential – all of which demanded a solid technologically savvy human resource base for its successful exploitation.

Somewhere along the way, however, we lost our way and there is no percentage in regurgitating the reasons for this sad state of affairs.

Today, our potential remains stubbornly undeveloped and our focus on the hard sciences and its applications have become diffused to the point of being almost nonexistent.

The two conditions are certainly not unrelated. It is widely accepted that for any country to join the “developed nations” club, that country will have to focus on “education” and in this respect the administration cannot be faulted. In fact, we can boast that we have already achieved the Millennium Goal of universal primary education.

But this achievement represents only the beginning of making us equipped for the challenges that are required for the quantum leap into the developed nations category.

For this attainment, we have to return to our pre-independence stress and valuation of a scientifically oriented education.In our secondary schools and at UG, the social sciences, especially the “business stream”, receives the bulk of our youthful minds.

While it is acknowledged that we do need accountants and sociologists, the question that has to be asked is, what sort of business will they service for our economy to move to another level if all we open up are new fast food outlets?

China, India and all the “Eastern Tigers” have demonstrated that countries can move from “Third World to First” in one generation – and they have done this by creating an educated workforce that was science-oriented. When opportunity came knocking, they were prepared.

There might have been a time when the entrepreneurial class was dominated by a “good old boy” network, nurtured in grammar schools that insisted on the classics along with Latin and Greek.No more.

This new round of globalisation has been built, and maintained, by a proliferation and explosion of innovations that are all based on the hard sciences.

The communication revolution that allowed India to get a jump over even dominant countries such as the US was made possible by their insistence on churning out engineers by the millions that had to innovate to survive.

China’s achievement as the manufacturing centre of the world would not have been possible without its population having the basic scientific literacy to live up to the stringent controls and specifications that are at the heart of any world class manufacturing enterprise.

To produce so that one does not perish is now unassailable that one has to first create a scientifically educated populace.

There will inevitably be asked the old question as to whether the egg or the chicken comes first. Can we just jump into focusing on the sciences if the market is not demanding such graduates?

There was a letter in the press recently by the father of one engineering graduate (from Cuba), who complained that his son had not received an appropriate job and was not being suitably compensated after his strenuous course of study.

But this father misses the point: what would his son be earning if he had gone into one of the social sciences that are available in Guyana?

The very fact that Guyana will have a pool of scientifically oriented and technologically trained young people will initiate its own dynamic for development.

The entrepreneur can only work with the environment he finds himself embedded within: for meaningful development to be kickstarted, that environment must include science mavens.

The government has started the process by sending several batches of youths for training in Cuba in several relevant technological fields.

However, this scientific training must become part and parcel of our entire educational system –from nursery to university – for us to generate the critical mass that will unleash our potential.

Latest News

Science Education

Related

Similar Articles

The Glenn Lall Show | November, 20th, 2024

Follow on Tik Tok @Glennlall

THE BLUNT OF THE DAY

Sports

Welcome and Sattaur hat-tricks power West Ruimvelt’s emphatic win

Mominul, Jaker help Bangladesh avoid follow on

Rutherford’s stunning century in vain as...

Bentick’s hat-trick lifts YMCA to $1M and...

Final batch of tickets for opening match released

NSC to host National Awards Ceremony on Thursday

Features/Columnists

The business class also funds undemocratic parties

Rising Gun Crimes in the Caribbean: Urgent Action required by all

Too many sharks too close for comfort

Publisher’s Note

Weekend Cartoon

Bridge Watch

Demerara Harbour Bridge

> Berbice Bridge […]

Science Education

Share this:

Related

Similar Articles

The Glenn Lall Show | November, 20th, 2024

Follow on Tik Tok @Glennlall

THE BLUNT OF THE DAY

Sports

Features/Columnists

Publisher’s Note

Weekend Cartoon

Bridge Watch

Demerara Harbour Bridge

> Berbice Bridge […]