Sam plays it again; defends himself

Feb 28, 2016 Letters

Dear Editor,
Please allow me to respond to the questions recently raised by a “primary school teacher” regarding comment I made at a meeting with Heads in Region 6. The first concern related to the statement “teach the pupil and not the curriculum”. This statement was made while addressing the issue of the unacceptably high failure rates in some schools. The evidence clearly showed that teachers were still engaged in the antiquated practice of teaching our pupils ‘for the sake of teaching’, with little regard for their ability levels and their learning needs. The message was that teachers must focus on the competencies of our pupils and, where necessary, modify our pedagogical approaches to adopt more pupil-centered elements.
Many teachers are obsessed with curriculum coverage and feel that as long as they would have covered the curriculum their work is done. This is occurring at the expense real learning, manifested by the large numbers of pupils failing and teachers moving on to new topics with little regard for the struggling pupils. Teachers were urged to diagnose before teaching, to devise action plans that are tailored to the competency needs of pupils, to consistently monitor their progress to ensure that learning is taking place and, where necessary, devise interventions to avert impending failure.
This was the context within which the statement was made but given our exam-driven culture in many schools the issue of the assessments is forever raised as a reason not to place the pupils first and to slavishly teach the curriculum. Another issue that was raised was that of Education Officers not sharing a similar mindset. As it relates to the former, I would have emphasized the point that once one focuses on and improves the pupils’ competencies; the assessments will take care of themselves. Secondly, one would be hard-pressed to find an Officers in this system who has not been steeped in these relevant approaches to teaching and learning given the emphasis placed on it at all levels.
Where we have found opposition is at the level of the class where teachers seem reluctant to change their traditional approaches to teaching. It is also worth mentioning here that the Ministry does not use examination results as the sole measure of the output of any institution. It is ironic however, that many who are obsessed with the school’s image fail to appreciate the fact that everything mentioned above is focused on improving pupil performance and will ultimately enhance the school’s overall output. Lastly, as it relates to the issue of parental involvement, it is my humble opinion that the attainment of our objectives in the education system cannot be dependent on such external factors.
Where it exists it is to be appreciated and nurtured.Its absence however, should not be a justification for the acceptance of underachievement. I feel that schools must try, as far as humanly possible, to compensate for any deficiencies or anomalies that emerge from our pupils’ domestic circumstances. To that end I urge all teachers to give of their best within the context of the pupils’ school-based experiences because external factors are oftentimes too complex and well beyond the school’s sphere of influence.
Olato Sam
Chief Education Officer

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