Latest update April 25th, 2024 12:59 AM
May 05, 2014 News
Designed to highlight issues of concern in the field of education, the University of Guyana’s School of Education and Humanities has for a number of years been offering EFN 7202, a programme in which educators are trained to conduct informed research projects.
A batch of these educators, at a forum held in the Education Lecture Theatre on Saturday, presented the findings of six intellectually sound research projects.
Divided into six groups, the educators were able to examine topics ranging from ‘A good appraisal system will impact the education sector positively’; ‘Indiscipline – the greatest obstacle to improve performance at the level of the school’; ‘Religious education should be a compulsory subject on the curriculum of schools’; ‘The integration of technology in teaching is key to improvement in student performance’; ‘The Guyana Teachers’ Union is no longer relevant’ and ‘The performance of boys at the secondary level is cause for concern’.
Dubbed the ‘Issues in Education and Development’ Course, the programme is one that was designed, and is currently taught, by former Chief Education Officer, Ed Caesar.
Caesar currently lectures to educators undertaking the Diploma and Masters in Education with a particular focus on ‘Issues in Education’.
“What I have done in those programmes is to cause educators to do research…so from day one they have their topics, they look at research and the final day of the course they do their presentations,” Caesar explained to this publication.
Usually the presentations are judged, mainly by persons outside of the University, and the outstanding group presentations on Saturday were rewarded with trophies.
Last year, the best performing Masters of Education students who undertook the ‘Issues in Education and Development’ course were duly presented with a monetary award, compliments of Vice Chancellor, Professor Jacob Opadeyi.
According to Caesar, it is his expectation that the educators will seek to do further research on the respective topics that they pursued for the course. Such a move, according to him, will not only benefit the Ministry of Education but the country as a whole.
Ahead of the presentations on Saturday, Educator Rhonda Hamilton, one of the students of the ‘Issues of Education and Development’ course presented an overview entitled “Bird’s eye view of an educator”.
The course, according to her, was conducted over a period of 15 weeks, and was challenging as it was stimulating. “The presentation of each lecturer aroused our passion for education, invoked a spirit of reading and un-budded our skills and talent in making the exchange of knowledge a worthwhile experience for our learners and ourselves.”
According to Hamilton, the course was characterised by discussion-style lectures and covered a landscape of issues which dealt with school effectiveness, decentralisation, school discipline, distance education, underachievement and education in Guyana, among other thought-provoking topics. Hamilton said too that the sessions promoted a high level of interactivity between the lecturer and educators through group presentations on issues that exposed their thought processes even as an environment rich in learning resources was created. “This adequately facilitated the exchange of ideas and sharing of evocative accounts relating to the educational system in Guyana,” Hamilton recalled. She emphasised too that the course was one that challenged educators to become agents of change in their learning spaces by becoming proactive, proficient and efficient leaders.
Also sharing brief remarks at the forum was Dr Leyland Thompson, Head, Department of Research and Graduate Studies at the University, who passionately told the educators that “it is always a joyous occasion to see you willing and ready to do battle and put all of your learning in place.” With the acquired knowledge, Thompson informed the educators that they are in a better position “to do so much good…so much you can give back with all the learning you have grasped.”
Also speaking on Saturday was recently elected President of the Guyana Teachers Union, Educator Mark Lyte. He in his remarks mused over the fact that the research topics are certainly not figment of anyone’s imagination since they are realistic issues within the sector.
“These issues affect us in the classroom, and they also affect how we relate to education within the education sector and as such this course is very much important because it highlights the problems and challenges faced in education,” Lyte observed.
He pointed out that some of the issues raised have in fact been within the sector from its inception with additions coming to the fore overtime. “It is our responsibility to ensure that we come up with relevant solutions and recommendations as to how we can deal with these challenges,” said the GTU President who is convinced that the educators’ works have put them in a good position to help policymakers in the quest to improve the sector.
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