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Sustained measures in place to arrest illiteracy – Baksh

Dec 07, 2010 News

The Ministry of Education competency-based approach to education is supported by critical assessments at Grades Two and Four, said Minister of Education Shaik Baksh, even as he sought to dispel some reports that little is being done to arrest illiteracy.
The Minister was at the time presenting remarks at the opening of a workshop for Welfare and Guidance and Counselling Officers at the Regency Hotel, Hadfield Street, Georgetown.
He revealed that the Ministry’s efforts have been so intense that efforts have been made to introduce a literacy certification component to the National Grade Four Assessment which is being offered through a Literacy Unit.
And even though he acknowledged that added intervening measures in the system are likely to put added pressure on teachers, the Minister yesterday urged teachers, particularly at the primary level, to remain committed to the delivery of education.
“I am urging teachers at every grade at the primary level to dedicate at least one extra hour every day after school to work with slower learners to improve their educational outcomes…Many have responded to the call but all have to come on board to address the weaknesses of pupils at the primary level to avoid a spill over to secondary schools,” the Minister asserted.
And though there is no expectation that there will be overnight results achieving the Ministry’s objective, the Minister is confident that the public education system will yield eventual success. He revealed that there has been no little effort to accelerate the rate at which the Ministry is able to reach its anticipated targets.
He asserted further that the onus is not merely on the Ministry to achieve success but noted that parents have an equal duty to promote education in its various forms to their children.  “Parents have a key role to play in this process. They can present their children with books as gifts, read to them and teach them to read.
These simple measures will help to make a significant difference in not only building their vocabulary but also to strengthen the emotional bond they share as a family.”
In addition, Baksh revealed that the public education system has been considerably boosted by the thousands of teachers that are being trained to effectively deliver the literacy programmes offered by the Education System. And it was with the intent to improve the literacy standard, the Minister revealed that the National Literacy Unit was formulated and has been directing attention to improving the state of literacy throughout Guyana.
It was only a few months ago Minister Baksh disclosed that an additional 40 literacy educators completed training and have joined an existing pool of 300, working both with in-school learners and out-of-school youths in all the education districts throughout the country to eliminate illiteracy.
Moreover, emphasis is being placed on literacy and numeracy at all Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions and thus far such programmes have recorded encouraging results, said the Minister.
Further, he revealed that the Prison Service has been working in collaboration with the Literacy Unit to improve literacy among inmates. A number of other organisations including corporate private sector agencies have also been working along with the Unit to provide literacy training for their workers, Baksh highlighted.
Just about 13,500 children from the primary and secondary levels were also able to benefit from remediation programme during the July/August vacation period which was designed to address their weaknesses in the areas of literacy and numeracy, the Minister added.

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