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Guyana being represented at major education-focused events in Trinidad
Coretta McDonald, CUT Vice President.
Shortage of teachers and furniture, need for salary increases, and better working conditions are but a few of the common issues that schools across the Caribbean, including Guyana, are constantly faced with. Moreover, these issues will be among a range of others that will be discussed during the Executive Council meeting of the Caribbean Union of Teachers [CUT] which is currently being held in Trinidad.
The two-day meeting, which commenced yesterday, is being attended by executive members of the Guyana Teachers’ Union [GTU] including its President, Mr. Mark Lyte, and its Deputy General Secretary, Ms. Jacquelyn Douglas. Lyte is expected to give a report of what transpired in Guyana, in relation to the education system, during the period September 2017 – February 2018.
Guyana is also adequately represented at the level of CUT by GTU’s General Secretary, Ms. Coretta McDonald. Since being elected Third Vice President of CUT in 2015, McDonald has been attending Council meetings which are designed to examine the concerns of its members.
CUT came into being in August of 1935 to promote the view that teachers are an integral part of the working people who constitute the majority of the Caribbean Society. Additionally, it recognizes the importance of teachers and teachers’ organizations. It further recognizes teachers as professionals who must work relentlessly to improve professional standards and who must show commitment to students, community and education.
As an organization, CUT is guided by its Mission Statement which states that it is the “umbrella organization for teachers’ in the Caribbean and is dedicated to efforts to further the cause of teacher unions: to promote the status, interest and welfare of teachers; to improve the quality of education in the Caribbean and to unite the peoples of the region.”
Guyana will also be well represented at yet another major education forum in the Twin Island Republic. Under the theme: ‘Leadership in times of crises ’, the Education International North America and Caribbean Regional conference will commence tomorrow. At that conference, McDonald confided, “we are going to be going through a whole host of issues too.”
Education International is said to be the largest teachers’ trade union in the world, consisting of 401 member organizations in 172 countries and territories that represent over 30 million education personnel from pre-school through university.
The conference is one that will see women from across the Region gathering at a single location to deliberate on issues ranging from leadership to sexual harassment.
Including McDonald, CUT will be sending, among its women members, Ms. Hazel Pyle, a Guyanese, who will represent CUT’s Women Committee.
Other issues that will be addressed at the conference will be: Disaster Preparedness and Response, Mental Health and Wellbeing, Equality and Diversity, and the need to strengthen the education profession.
“The conference will also be examining what new pressure will be placed on governments regarding dealing with natural disasters and how to respond to same readily, and then we are going to look at some of the restorative practices and humanitarian relief,” McDonald related.
The conference will include a panel discussion which will see the needs of the Caribbean schools being highlighted – what needs are already being met through the coordinated efforts of Education International members and what should be the immediate priority.
Also high on the agenda of the conference is early childhood education, higher education and education support personnel. Slated to make a presentation on early childhood development is GTU’s Regional Vice President [Demerara], Mr. Collis Nicholson. The meeting will also give attention to human rights issues as well.
“Coming out from all of the sessions of this conference there will be resolutions,” McDonald said, and it is expected that these will be adopted by participating countries.
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