A shocking experience at the tender age of 6 threatened devastating consequences. (Scroll down to listen to the eye-opening interview). Instead, her “electrical accident” triggered an insatiable curiosity into how things work. This hunger and thirst for knowledge propelled Kendra Jean-Jacques to be arguably acclaimed as Dominica’s leading young scientist. Undeterred by the fact that black males remain at the bottom of the heap internationally, Kendra launches into promoting S.T.E.M. and the Cosmic Wisdom behind it all.
Fruitcake and sorrel appeal to Ms. Jean-Jacques just as to any other Dominican. Yet she took time from her exams and the festive season to talk to us about her passion. Quite notably, she does not see her vibrant faith as conflicting with her quest for nature’s secrets. While a student at St. Martin’s Secondary, her fondness for Science-Technology-Engineering-Math (S.T.E.M.) inspired the 2013 award-winning invention of “Flushometer: Little Water, Big Flush.” Under the guidance of science teacher Ms. Vanessa Seraphin, she designed a technical system that utilizes just a cup of water! (Details in the interview below).
They say lightning does not strike twice. However, the remarkable Ms. Seraphin went on to mentor the very next science winner – two in a row! She said of Kendra, “She got to present her project regionally, to various people and we are very proud as a school, that we represented Dominica. We are very proud of the student because she did an excellent job at presenting the project.”
I have had the privilege of being asked annually to be a judge for these science competitions in Ohio. I agree with Ms. Seraphin that few other things infuse more confidence in our youth and hope for the future.
At university graduations in the United States, Korean and Chinese students dominate in S.T.E.M. Concurrent with this achievement is their countries’ phenomenal economic growth based on technology. I would be dismayed at the tiny fraction of black doctorates though most of those turned out to be West Indian or African anyway.
Dr. John Wilson, president of Morehouse, a premier historically black college in Atlanta, has some insight into the issue. At a recent national education forum in Washington DC, he reported, “African-American males have smaller vocabularies upon entering kindergarten. They are more likely to be behind in reading and numeracy by fourth grade and are at a higher risk of being suspended. The potential pool of STEM African-American males has shrunk already, so it’s earlier in the pipeline when we’re going to have to find the solutions to this.”
Our children have smaller vocabularies primarily as a result of what they have been exposed to. They have no problem reciting word for word the lyrics of top rap songs. A Grammar School classmate of mine back then was the most brilliant mathematician I’ve ever encountered. Ask him to multiply 937 by 482 and he’d give the answer in 3 seconds flat – or less What did he do with that gift? He started smoking herb, turned Dread and despised ‘white man education.’ He now runs errands for his sister’s business. Truly, “a mind is a terrible….”
It all begins with good parenting, which involves more than simply asking your child, “Did you do your homework?” Ask, “What grade did you get?” for each assignment, not just the end-of-term report card. Invest in extra classes and encourage them to join academic clubs or church and social groups that contribute in some direct way to personal and national development. Learned Dominicans at home and abroad who have made sterling contributions through our Academy of Arts and Sciences will now push Sagicor Life and the Caribbean Science Foundation/CXC sponsors to advance the competition to every year.
Christmas is a time for giving dolls and video games to perfumes, purses, power tools and other big boy toys. Kendra, who now attends the Dominica State College, reminds us that we can also give the gift of science. She reads a science article every day! How can she not excel?
We are doing okay in the arts, culture and sports (cricket? um…not so much). Nevertheless, we ought to start disciplining and engaging our students earlier while working to dispel the curse of low expectations. True success comes from encouraging them to believe that they can accomplish above and beyond what their parents could ever ask or think.
Look out…Kendra is going nuclear! She said so herself. Listen to Kendra’s interview below:
Dr. Sam Christian MD is syndicated columnist focusing on health and related development issues. He runs the Urgent Care medical office on Bath Road for those interested in getting back to work faster. He can be reached at 767 440-9133 or by logging onto www.urgentcareda.weebly.com
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Yes our children do have the potential to perform well in school and most parents give them as much as they can. Some parents bend over backwards to give them ‘everything’. I just wish the ‘everything’ were the correct things. They forgot that the children need educational support. Little things like ‘read to me’, ‘what did you learn in school today’,’ let me see your exercise books’ and quite a few more would go a long way to improving their progress. Teachers can never do everything.
There’s nothing to putting up a project for science. The only expense is a posterboard. With a little help from the community, materials such as wires, batteries, etc can be donated or even sent from overseas. Dominicans in the Diaspora would only be too happy to furnish prizes.
The biggest obstacle is dedicated teachers willing to put in the extra time without bothering to quibble about extra pay. That’s why Ms. Vanessa Seraphin deserves so much praise. And unless some other teacher steps up to match her devotion, she’s going to win again. Just watch!
Thanks Kendra and Dr. Christian. I’m inspired.
What an inspiring young woman!
These madmen are hell-bent on destroying Nigeria.
Good thing you mentioned your classmate, Dr. Sam. What does Boko Haram mean? “Western education is a sin.” You’re right about the Koreans and the Chinese. Know anyone with a Samsung phone? I guess they don’t believe white man education is a sin. The laziness of the parents is reflected in the performance of their children.
Ask to SEE the grade of each assignment. If parents show no interest, don’t be surprised at the results.
Great work Kendra. You make us proud. Your faith will take you far.
We often hear parents say they gonna give their children what they never had. That includes a proper education. So our children are given everything they need but yet some of them still do very poorly, why because they are not deciplined enough and I think that might be one of the reasons why some are falling by the way side. They have the potential but are distracted by everything that’s going on around them.
Children like Kendra and others who have excelled am sure came from humble beginnings but they do know that the only thing that can get them out of poverty is a proper education that’s why they embrace it. Our children must use the gadgets they have walking around in their hands like purse for the positive and not for the negative, then we will be able to read more success stories like Kendra’s. I would love to read about someone from dominica who has found a cure for Cancer or aids or even someone being an astronot.
Sir we appreciate your brilliant article on science education. We must promote students like Kendra who do science projects and stay away from the idle gossip style seen on many of our blogs. By promoting technology education small Asian nations now leading in making all sorts of electronics we buy in huge number. The amazing amount of science talent we have is overseas. It would be better where we appoint our skilled scientist as ambassadors with the mission being to bring home all kinds of technology and technique we could then do on Dominica to build wealth. After 25 years of passport sales we have a hotel covered by bush and a snake oil minister in the UK no one knows of. Time to focus on how we can build up our brain power. Thanks Doc.
Profond piece Dr Christian. We need to reminded, according to our great son
Gordon Henderson. ” We need to be famous before we can be elected to the hall of fame”. Right on point i say, It all starts on how we shape the minds and cultivate in our kids the power of. I Can, and I will”. The sky is the limit.