Over the last month or so, there’s been a lot of news about schools. Most of what’s been reported brings the old adage “no news is good news” to mind. Sadly, this isn’t unusual. There has been a lot of outrage and ire, a lot of talk, but it seems like there hasn’t been much analysis.
At one Cunupia secondary school, the police are investigating a “sex game” involving students, while in Point Fortin a primary school was unfortunately, burned to the ground. In San Fernando, a principal at a girls’ school was accused of racism while at a nearby Muslim primary school the PTA sought and obtained an injunction to bar a teacher from the premises. These news items raise a series of related questions like: What is the status of the proposed nationwide sex ed program within the school system? What is the real procedure regarding maintenance and upgrading of school facilities? What other dangers are students and staff exposed to daily in poorly maintained/constructed facilities? How do we start to have open, productive conversations about race and racism in T&T? When and how these questions will be answered is not entirely clear.
Still, some critical conversations and analyses have begun and I hope that the powers that be not only take note of them, but join in wholeheartedly. Below are some thought-provoking excerpts from newspaper columns by Gabrielle Hosein and Dr. Sheila Rampersad. Follow the links for the full columns and let us know what you think about what they’ve written in the comments section.
“The reality of education in newly independent Trinidad and Tobago was that it was designed to train students to pass examinations. The Common Entrance was a thinly disguised version of the United Kingdom’s eleven-plus. Whatever opinions may have been voiced about the role of secondary education in national development, in practice, the business of principals and teachers was to prepare students to pass the General Certificate of Education (GCE) examination. More than half a century later, there is still no greater influence on the primary and secondary school curricula than passing exams.”
– “Enough Already” by Dr. Sheila Rampersad
“When some of the top scoring students in the country come to UWI, I meet them mostly unwilling to speak out publicly, mostly inattentive to global affairs, mostly disconnected from our region’s ecology, mostly without compelling inner curiosity, and mostly familiar with treating each other like widgets rather than interconnected, fearless human beings. Students are clearer on exams than comprehension, critique or how to connect seemingly disparate ideas.”
– “Diary of a Mothering Worker” by Gabrielle Hosein