Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development, Chandler Hyacinth, has said that resilience needs to, and must begin at the Early Childhood level.
She was delivering the feature address at the National Early Childhood Development Symposium held at the Goodwill Parish Hall on Monday.
“As a ministry we have begun our drive to ensure that there is resilience in the entire ministry,” she said. “We have therefore proposed a new mission which states, to build and manage an education system that is transformative, responses socially and environmentally sensitive, nationally relevant, globally competitive and inspires lifelong learning.”
She continued, “Furthermore; we have also begun concentrating on resilience in infrastructure of all our institutions, including our Pre-Schools.”
Hyacinth indicated that the Ministry of Education has recognized that in their quest to build a resilient country concentration should not only be placed on the physical aspect of the sector, “not only ensuring that we have infrastructure that are resilient as can be, but also on the development of human capacity.”
“ And what better way to start than at the beginning, not at the end, not in the middle, but at the beginning with our Early Childhood facilities,” she stated.
According to her, student- teacher role is critical in supporting the learning and well-being of students.
Hyacinth pointed out a few strategies to help build resilience in the Early Childhood Sector.
Firstly, she mentioned opportunities and activities, both indoor and outdoor, that challenge children’s thinking skills and facilitate social and emotional development as well as their coping skills.
“In other words, children need to be given an opportunity to play…,” she explained. “It is through play that they learn how to socialize, to work in groups, to share, to negotiate and even to advocate for themselves.”
Hyacinth said play allows children to develop their creativity and imagination while child driven play will help them develop and pursue their own interest and passion.
She said also that children should be given opportunities to resolve their differences amicably without the immediate intervention of adults.
“Let us teach them from a very young age how to solve their problems,” Hyacinth remarked. “If they begin at that age they will be able to deal with bigger issues that will conform them as they grow older.”
Hyacinth believes that children need to be given opportunities to work independently and confidently on in-depth research projects.
“Each child can be encouraged to do some planting at home and observe the change in the plant as they grow,” she noted. “We have to help our students in problem solving and in particular, we can use the subject of agriculture to begin that with them.”
She told parents and educators that they need to be able to recognize when there is a need to refer a child for social support services where and when necessary.
Hyacinth urged parents to work with the Early Childhood Institutions, especially to ensure that the programme helps the children to learn to be resilient.
The event included a number of performances from some Early Childhood Institutions on island. Also a number of long-serving teachers and Pre-School Daycares were awarded during the event.
The event was held under the Theme: “My Love, My Home, My Dominica- Building a Resilient Nation Beginning at Early Childhood”
Yessah, Monkey see Monkey do! What will be the next word to be used and abused after Resilient
The men of this program, and of early childhood development and education have to speak up and speak out. They are absent from the picture, so I cannot help but wonder if there was not one male figure actively taking part in the early development, or early education, fitting of the honor enough to be among those receiving awards in the picture..
The word resilience is fast becoming too old fashioned. Can I find me a resilient woman in Dominica after hurricane Maria?
are you resilient enough for women to waste their time on?
I highly doubt the problem is Dominican women in that equation
buoyant
strong
supple
tough
volatile
airy
effervescent
elastic
expansive
hardy
irrepressible
plastic
pliable
quick to recover
rebounding
rolling with punches
rubbery
snapping back
springy
stretchy
It was hollistic a few years ago now is resillient topping the charts in Dominica so i sent ressilliant vocab family celebrate its success so they can be part of celebration.
“Stake Holders” must likewise be somewhere near the top of the chart.
How did i forget this one!!! actually got bumped to second. You are correct!!!
Bravo Ms. Hyacinth. You just killed off resilience. It was about time too. That word has lost all meaning as everything is labelled resilient in Dominica now. Ridiculous.
Do you really want to take back your Children ? American 24 7 Cable TV must take a back seat, Cell phones in school is a none starter, Foreign Fast Foods must be thrown into the Roseau River, the advertising of Alcohol and Tobacco plus limiting its use, might be the best initiative. The wrong information propagating in out midst, is the greatest of all Evils , Resilience really mean the ability to continuously struggle against the Evils the we have created ourselves, e.g Parents.
I would suggest that she would get closer to that nondefined objective by helping our children to know themselves by being exposed to the life and times of those who went before them starting with their grandparents.There is nothing new under the sun.I am convinced thats part of the missing link.Its easy,not costly and readily avaliable.
Best they start getting some synonyms for the word “Resilience”. PS in the Ministry of Education maybe it should start with you. Remember in schools we were taught not to overuse a word find other words that means the same.
The majority of our teachers try their best to inculcate morals, virtues and discipline in our children. However, if these are not reinforced in the home, all these strenuous efforts and thoughtful programs mostly go to waste. The home is the most important institution in a society. What is taught in the schools and churches should be reinforced in the home. When the home becomes dysfunctional, all of society becomes dysfunctional. If each home were of good moral standing, most of society would be peace-loving, law abiding and productive.
The children are the arrows, the homes are the bows. When we shoot the arrows from the bows into society, let’s ensure that the arrows are not fiery with poisoned tips, but are arrows of love, kindness, peace, empathy and all that’s good.
@Ibo France
I like this comment! You are right on my friend. Our parents of today, seem to have no time to supervise and discipline their children, but without that base instruction in their Life there is no way that they will continue to move up and forward into a well-disciplined and trained adult.
This is well displayed in the attitude and conduct of the young men in Dominica, today.
Very well said Elizabeth. You wrote truth that cannot be disputed. Five things that turn children into law abiding and productive citizens are : 1) the home 2)the home 3) the home 4) the home 5) the home
The other institutions should reinforce or build upon the lessons from the home
Agreed. The scale is balanced when there are equal weights on both sides.
Dear Mrs Hyacinth, what a wonderful idea.
I have been thinking recently that we need to become self sufficient as a nation in meat products. Can you consider starting via the ministry of Education, a program, whereby all children of school age are given 2-3 chicken to look after, so that they can build small fowl houses, collect grass- i.e. “Zeb Gwa”- for their chickens, and grate coconut and feed their chickens on any left over food from the table.
In Dominica, from my memory of 38 years ago, if the boat did not arrive at the port with “Back and Neck”, we had no chicken for lunch.
Mrs Hyacinth, if I can help you from Kent-UK, I am willing to do so.
Imagine if we can give every school child 2 chicks to look after, what the effect would be in say 6 – 12 months time. Children could eat eggs. Flocks could grow, and there could be more self sufficiency in terms of food in Dominica. Resiliance and self sufficiency go hand in hand.
Sorry Roland but where are these children going to keep their chickens in the apt. buildings our P.M. is going to build for them? I like your idea though. In my youth those chickens had more room to roam and sleep than those children in apt. buildings.
What happen this word was just discovered!!!??? EVERYTHING NOW IS RESILIENCE??? It was DIASPORA… now RESILIENCE…
OH PLEASE!! SMH
The word “resilient”, in all its forms, has lost most of its “impact” here in Dominica. It now has very little meaningful effect left. Keep on and the word will be dead very soon.
It has absolutely nothing to do with education, not early or any other kind, it is being muss used. I have asked others to research the meaning of the word and its proper use, or usual use.
Very soon we will hear we must be resilient when it comes to resilience.
Ebeh allu like that word papa. 2017 that word come out man?
10 years ago that headline would read, The next level must begin at early childhood level.
Why don’t we just change the name of our country from “Dominica” to ‘Resilience’? All you allowed Skerrit to destroy Dominica and went to the UN to lie about Maria and resilience and from that day all you hear in Dominica is residence. In fact since Maria the word resilience is used more than Dominica, so we might as well change the name.
Preparing children to be the future farmers is a good idea, however, one of the statements in the article I would take issue with. She said also that children should be given opportunities to resolve their differences amicably without the immediate intervention of adults.
By this statement, it is obvious that this woman does not recognize the reason children need adult guidance and intervention. Children are not adults and they do not generally settle differences amicably without adult intervention and supervision. That is not to say that there are not some children that may possess this capability. Maybe she doesn’t understand the bully mentality and the cruelness of children toward other children, especially the shy ones or the ones that are “different.”.
Many adults can’t even settle things amicably. A good upbringing is essential for the development of good moral character and compassion toward all living things something sorely lacking in DA.
Just looking at the picture i can tell we have a serious problem. It looks like a feminist movement. I dont mean to be cynical. Mrs hyacinth may have good intentions but she has left out the number one catalyst to early childhood resillience, and that is the home and the family. The importance of having a positive family structure with loving caring parents that bring kids up the right way. Not whipping but teaching them good values and morals and being examples. Kids learn by copying behaviors in our society and it starts at home. How do we teach them solve problems amicable when we adults dont. The first learning institutions for kids start in the house and that is where resillient starts. Add in household income, poverty, sigle parents, grand parents and all the othe family dynamics we have issues. Building resillent youth without strong family structure and values is like building coconut branch house with more rope hoping it will survive cat 5 storm. Broken family broken society.
Hi Dominicans
Dominica has a name change
It is:
,”””Commonwealth of Resilient”””
Skerrit Must Go
Skerrit Must Go
LAZY Skerrit Must Go Now
It is shocking to see how so called educated people can ‘kill’ a word so fast…Alas the poor word “resilient” is probably asking for mercy in the dictionary….Ms Hyacinth neither you nor Skerrit know in which context you all are using the term resilience .This is absurdity the way in which our so called professionals sacrifice their professional training on the alter of political hypocrisy.What a shame!.
Well just rename Dominica right away nah.
“””Commonwealth of Resilient”””
Skerrit Must Go
Skerrit Must Go
LAZY Skerrit Must Go Now
While I am not a supporter of institutionalised early childhood education (ideally that should be done in the home environment) I nevertheless support Ms. Hyacinth’s initiative in its wider context.
The important thing is to let a child know that it is okay to be different.
As I have said many times over, research has shown that a child is born with 98% the creative potential of genius. By the age of adulthood that potential, due to pier pressure and conformity, has been reduced to less than 1%.
For the Memorial Service of Virgin Island poet Sheila Hyndman (1958-1991) I choose a poem by Edgar
Allen Poet, the opening lines of which are:
From childhood’s hour I have not been
As others were – I have not seen
As others saw, – I could not bring
My passions from a common spring.
,,
Honestly if I hear one more time that word resilience I throw up. That word has become like a catchphrase now A mantra that you must sing if you don’t want to be left out. Do you remember the next level another word that became hyped and meaningless. I wonder what the next concept is the great psychologist will bamboozle us with. Dumping soil into the Indian river is not that resilient is it Reggie and George?
Anyway anyway,…… if you want to kill a word fast is give it to my fellow country men. Very soon we will hear a death announcement for resilience
Chandler Hyacinth
“Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development, Chandler Hyacinth, has said that resilience need to, and must begin at the Early Childhood level.”
It is very sad to read where one who is secretary in the nation Ministry of Education, stand in front of a podium, and talk such nonsense!
Not knowing the meaning of neither resilient, nor resiliency, even the so called educated people who should know found themselves caught up in this foolishness, where the words resilient, and resilience, are missed used in the country, that eve one who should know better, does not know she is using the word resilience out of context!
I do not see resilience have anything early childhood level, it does not make any sense in the context that woman is using the word!
It is all baloney; Roosevelt is building the first resilient country on the planet, now she has resilient infants and toddlers.
How stupid a statement is that?