Teachers need to vote with their heads and not their hearts at the upcoming GTU elections

Feb 27, 2010 Letters

Dear Editor,
I have been following with keen interest the upsurge of letters appearing in these columns concerning the Guyana Teachers Union.
Elections are going to be happening very soon and the Guyana Teachers Union will, very soon, elect a new president, hopefully with the vision of taking the teaching profession to new soaring heights.
Recently, yours truly caught up with one of those running for the presidency of the union, Mr. Colin Bynoe and I just had to milk some information out of him. I know that the public out there would find the information I am going to be presenting in the few lines below very helpful and informative. I believe teachers need to vote very sensibly at their respective schools.
Mr. Bynoe, a headteacher of Port Mourant Community High on the Corentyne Coast has been in the profession for quite some time. According to Bynoe, he was an active member of the union since the 1980s. He received training in the military, and he said that he “comes from persons with experience from Berbice, like Ancel Hazle, Samuel Archer, and Sydney Murdock, too. There is an urgent need for strong leadership in the GTU, now that the Labour Movement is going through a crisis,” Bynoe reaffirmed. “Let’s struggle for real morality and improvement based on honesty and transparency,” he said.
According to the teacher, if elected to the presidency, he will ensure teachers stand up to their responsibilities, and the rights, he said, will come. He stated that teachers must take a professional approach to their work, and maintain a high degree of morality —not only in speech but in action. He stated that the need to keep records intact to show that we (teachers) are responsible people.
I commented to Mr. Bynoe of the fact that many teachers in Berbice feel forgotten and left out of the business and affairs of the GTU in Georgetown. I related to him that many times Berbice hardly knows what is going on and what is being fought for teachers in Guyana.
Mr. Bynoe stated that, when elected, he envisions teachers being trained within the union to be leaders and that the branches network with each other in such a way that information and feedback is relayed back and forth effectively.
Touching on the package that the GTU fought for the past years, Mr. Bynoe stated that the package came with a lot of “fine print”, which many did not see. He also commented on the multi-year agreement signed between the government and GTU in past years. Bynoe said that the agreement was a poor one and did not take into consideration the 5% inflation rates over the years.
Among the problems teachers face today, according to the candidate for president, are “subjective” appraisals of teachers on a termly basis. Mr. Bynoe stated that many teachers are ranked down when and if they are not liked by headteachers and superiors with the current appraisal system. He said that the system needs to be changed. The student-to-teacher ratio must be improved he said. “Some classes have as many as 60 students; now how can effective learning take place? We need less class sizes and proper teacher protection, too”.
Commenting on the student violence which has been raising its ugly head across Guyana over the weeks, Mr. Bynoe stated that teachers ought to be protected.
The union, in the future, he said “needs people who are fearless in making decisions. We need a better GTU for our teachers. I am shocked that so many negative issues have been airing themselves in the media, like the indiscipline of students, violence and hooliganism in schools, poor salaries, etc, etc and nothing is being said from the GTU standpoint. Is the union sleeping? Will they and the ministry take note of these pressing issues when students kill each other ‘blood bath style’ in schools?”
Teachers in Berbice and across Guyana need to vote with their heads and not their hearts at these upcoming elections.
Leon Jameson Suseran

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Teachers need to vote with their heads and not their hearts at the upcoming GTU elections

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