Education Minister Petter St. Jean says there is a need to re-evaluate the teaching system in Dominica.
St. Jean made the remarks at the Dominica Association of Teachers, Ministry of Education, Canadian Teachers Federation Summer Workshop on Monday.
“Pretty soon we will be launching a new program at our secondary schools. A program that targets the top performers, one that will focus on developing the skills of our children,” he said.
He said the Ministry of Education will seek to change the culture of teaching at every school in Dominica.
“The success of every program is hinged on the teacher. We believe teachers’ development is at the core of success, hence we must make a concerted effort to change the culture at every one of our schools,” he said.
Dear all, I am currently looking into secondary schools in Dominica (Roseau area) for a child in my family and would very much appreciate it if you could give me any insight into Orion academy (Canefield). I would basically like to find out if it is worth the money to send a child there versus to Dominica Grammar School and the pro’s and con’s of each. I have heard that class rooms in Dominica Grammar School are overcrowded with 35 kids in a classroom with just one teacher, versus only between 10-15 children at Orion so obviously each child would get a lot more attention there. I have seen their website but would like to get some other opinions. Many thanks!
USE have been around for awhile; can’t the minister of education see that its not working? there are children in grade six presently who need to be back in kindergarten to start over because they know nothing. how can a secondary school teacher deal with that child. the teachers need to make demands on the government to deal with this situation asap.
One thing you will notice in Dominica: things always “need” to be done, and yet they are almost never done. Ministers love talking about doing, but as for doing the thing itself….
Secondary education is not the only problem. We need better post-secondary options. The state college is more or less a disaster, and even those who do their time there may find the little degree they get not accepted at schools abroad, thus forcing them to do those credit hours again. That is an absurdity.
As for secondary education: well, I don’t think it’s fair to say that if a student does not show skill in one subject that he or she is slow in that subject. There are many cases in which a student does poorly at first and then, over time, does significantly better. Sometimes students do poorly simply because they think studying is uncool and because they worry too much about not being perceived as being nerdy–but not because they are incapable of doing it. To put a student who does poor at math into agriculture or woodworking (as was suggested below) may work but may also stifle that child’s development. The simple answer is that you have to wait and see. Geniuses may develop more slowly than you think, while some may be apparent from the start. Either way, it’s the end result that counts.
The quality of education itself needs to be improved. Teachers cannot be mispronouncing words and having students emulate them. (I once heard a social studies teacher pronounce democracy as demo-crassy.) The arts need to be a more prominent part of certain schools’ curricula. And evolution must be taught in biology classrooms.
there is an even greater need to re evaluate this political shitstem in dominica. with all u corrupt mps in power doin what u want and when u want like u all above the law!
the minister needs to ask himselfone questions- am i competent for this jobs, do i have wat it takes, and one wen theses are answered truthfully, can we execute a plan. the time for havin moron as ministers are long gone
Start the evaluation from the top
Mr minister, you and your government are only playing politics with the nations education..U S E is a failure despite the feeble effort of the government to polish it..Students need to be able to write their names at the Prinary School level..U S E is expensive and the money is going into the pockets of our greedy politicians…!!!
Why the top performers, nuh….? We all know they will survive. It is the slow learners and the educationally challenge who occupy high school seats, the ministry should be catering for to resuscitate their dying brain.
Of course, the school system needs serious revamping. Just look at the universal promotion that happened at most government-owned secondary schools this year. Students with below 40% average were promoted…what madness is that!
Then, teachers are always late for work or constantly absent and all they get is a letter of warning despite their perpetual irregularity and tardiness.
Problem teachers and principals are not disciplined or fired, but are just rotated from school to school. I know a teacher from Salisbury would probably have worked at all schools. All where she pass, is trouble, but she is still in the system. I hear this year the ministry is scratching its head as to where to put her. I have a solution- SEND HER HOME.
Students, teachers and parents at a particular high school in town are on edge as the ministry take a principal who has had numerous reports of sexual misconducts with young boys to the school, as if they cannot find a position in the ministry for him. It’s only when he coerce another young boy; they will take notice. Me, myself, I warn my son already; doh try to get into trouble to go into the man’s office…Old habits die hard. The school is on edge, every one (teachers, parents and students) gossips about it, but everybody afraid to talk. But the bomb will burst. I hid it for a year-I won’t any more. In Dominica, we too like to remain hush-hush.
Ministry officials changing school’s curriculum, even school’s timetable to suit themselves cut-eying the needs of the students especially the more educationally-challenged ones. Every ‘big boy’ with a degree wants to do something to pretend they are doing work.
Most schools on the island have to fend for themselves- lack of teaching gears; yet ministry officials want teachers to produce effective, student-centered lessons.
Indeed, the ministry of education needs a revamp; but who is in the best position to effect that change but the minister himself.
And we doh want him and the ministry to cater for the gifted students; more students in the system are drowning than staying afloat in the ministry’s ocean called wipe-your-foot-and-enter aka USE policy.
People Dominica is a hall of mirrors. Everything is a damn illusion- ON SHAKY grounds.. Too making people who don’t know jack are in key positions in Dominica.
What happens to the poor performers I would think that he would be ones paid attention to. It is not their fault that they were used as pawns in he dirty game of political expediency. You cannot take children who don’t know their ABC and send them to school. It is building a house without foundation. What do you expect them to do when they get to high school excel?? Oh lord poor Dominica, what a future of country has in the hands of THESE?
That should have been send them to high school
“You cannot take children who don’t know their ABC and send them to school.”
the honest facts are not every one has the intellect to become doctors, lawyers or engineers. Nor do all kids want to achieve such goals. Therefore the ‘Universal Education’ was always doomed to fail, the JSP program which taught kids who were slower in maths and science other skills such as masonry, carpentry, home economics, agriculture etc should have never be done away with.The was pure ignorance on the part of the government, those ‘slower’ kids weren’t catered for in their politicking.
It really, really needs evaluation. much much too much evaluation. The system of universal education and the system of selecion of high school for the kids. Too much politics involved. Cant understand how Grammar School not accepting the bursarry by one point and another child from the same community who did far worse get accepted. Guess what….. u all wouldn’t want to know what school that almost bursarry child get. COME ON GET ALL U ACT STRAIGHT
Mr St. Jean i strongly believe and it is cyrstal clear that universal education is not working and alot of youngsters are suffering because of that.
take for example some children from ur village of laplaine, lets see the past 2-3 groups of students from the primary school, majority of them were not prepared for secondary school. just look at it from ur pass school and tell me if u really think that universal education is working? Alot of those students are repeating 1st form. How can a child who have difficulty getting grades 4 work do well in secondary school?
The government should stop play politics with our children. The universal education is not working and it is destroying the foundation of the secondary schools. there is the need for a technical high school for students that can’t grasp the academic subjects. Only the real bright students survive secondary school now.
Minister of Education You all need to re-evaluate the Education Act first and fore most.
Stop that Universal secondary education its not working. Put back the JSP programme because our Technically inclined students are going astray. If you want to keep the Universal secondary education put programmes and schools for the technically incline students. Go do ur home work Mr Minister.
A program that targets the top performers??. Is that suppose to be rewarding the top performers and targeting the under performing teachers. Sounds a bit weird. I still think that the universal secondary school system is problematic. The ministry of education must re-evaluate and focus on the vocational program. The era of the vocation and junior secondary program brought great benefit to our country. The development and production of good trades men and women. Our production sector some growth. Today what we see is a lot of young kids dropping off of secondary school only to become drug dealers, trouble makers and idlers. What do you expect when we take kids who are academically challenged and force them into an academic program. I know of several kids who could not cope with the academic program and are today on the streets running around doing nothing productive. Among these kids there are several of them who skilled in other areas – good mechanical and auto body repair inclinations; good wood working skills etc.
I sincerely hope that this government swallow their pride and go back to the drawing board or should I say back to the computer.
I SUPPORT YOU 100%!!!
UNIVERSAL SECONDARY EDUCATION IS NOT WORKING.. IT IS DESTROYING THE FUTURE OF THE STUDENTS WHO ARE NOT ACADEMICALLY INCLINED!!!