MANDEVILLE, Jamaica – Earl Jarrett, Chairman of the Mutual Building Societies Foundation (MBSF), says the transformation of the country’s educational system needs urgent attention.
Speaking at the 2010 graduation ceremony at Mile Gully High School in Manchester, on Wednesday, June 30, Mr. Jarrett opined that although the country continues to grapple with various economic and social issues, development of the educational process needs to be prioritised.
“There are times when, given the many concerns about growing our country’s economy, balance the budget, eliminate crime and gangs, and face the realities of building a just society, that we neglect one of our most urgent priorities, which is to: Make Centres of Excellence a priority for all Jamaican schools,” he told the 108 graduates, teachers and parents.
The MBSF, which Mr. Jarrett chairs, conducts the Centres of Excellence programme which assists the Ministry of Education’s Education Transformation Programme in its efforts to improve the school system. The five-year initiative, funded by a $100 million facility provided by the Jamaica National Building Society and The Victoria Mutual Building Society, focuses on education in six upgraded rural high schools. Mile Gully and McGrath High were the pilots in 2008; and last year Godfrey Stewart, Porus, Green Pond and Seaforth High Schools were added to the programme that will end in 2012.
Making reference to the progress and changes at Mile Gully High since it came under the Centres of Excellence programme in 2008, Mr. Jarrett emphasized that all upgraded high schools can succeed if they are assisted to acquire the resources they need.
And, he urged Jamaicans not to sideline upgraded high schools because of the negative perceptions about these institutions. Using the concept purported by Nigerian author, Chimamanda Adiche- The Danger of Single Story- Mr. Jarrett made the point that schools are as good as they are perceived by the community.
“Single stories create stereotypes,” he said. “Therefore, to some people in Manchester, Mile Gully is not such a good school. But, the problem with stereotypes is that they are limited in their scope and do not give you the total picture and so many people do not bother to look beyond the school gate,” he remarked noting that many upgraded schools were in fact doing better than perceived, and could do as well as traditional high schools if they were assisted with building capacity.
Earl Jarrett, Chairman of the Mutual Building Societies Foundation (MBSF), gives a word of encouragement to head boy and girl at the Mile Gully High School, Shevauni Powell and Monique Wint, following the school’s 2010 Graduation Ceremony at the school in Mile Gully, Manchester on June 30.
Mile Gully High was placed among the top five non- traditional high schools in Information Technology in the 2009 Caribbean Secondary Examination Certificate (CSEC) examinations, with a pass rate of 98 percent, Mr. Jarrett noted pointing to one of the successes of the school.
And, with a new science lab, furnished with new equipment from the MBSF and Food for the Poor, the students are being prepared to sit Physics for the first time in the next school year; and have improved their output in other science subjects. The school is also benefiting from other software delivered through the programme, which are improving literacy and numeracy, as well as simplifying the teaching of the sciences.
Earl Jarrett, Chairman of the Mutual Building Societies Foundation (MBSF), gets a first-hand look at one of two software donated to the Mile Gully High School under the MBSF Centres of Excellence programme following the school’s graduation exercise on Wednesday, June 30. Demonstrating the AutoSkills software is Sashell Samuels, a fourth-form student at Mile Gully High.
“Educators are also being re-trained in all six schools to set the pace for an enlightened approach to teaching,” Mr. Jarrett also pointed out. “Teachers are accepting that ‘chalk and talk’ may not be the best way to teach our children; and that new techniques would have to be adopted in teaching boys who learn differently from girls.”
In addition, the teachers are being trained to use a data-driven approach to plan lessons and to monitor students’ performance, he said.
The MBSF Chairman commended the administrative and academic staff at Mile Gully for accepting the change process; and applauded parents and guardians who had taken special interest in the education of their children.
Noting the changes that were taking place at the school, Mr. Jarrett charged the 2010 Mile Gully graduates to make the most of the opportunities now available to them. “As this process continues to unfold, I am positive that you can now accept that, excellence, as John Gardener reminds us, simply means, ‘Doing ordinary things, extraordinarily well.’
“I implore you that this is not the time to fall between the cracks. This is not the time to lose your way. Instead, this is the time for action!” he charged.
One hundred and eight graduates participate in the 2010 Mile Gully High School Graduation Ceremony held at the school in Manchester, Wednesday June 30.
