Jamaica Teaching Council explores ways of improving boys’ education
THE JAMAICA Teaching Council (JTC), an agency of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information (MoEYI), in partnership with the Commonwealth Secretariat, is stepping up its efforts to improve the educational achievements of boys in Jamaica.
At a recent consultative workshop aimed at improving boys’ educational achievements and active citizenship in the Caribbean, a policy toolkit and guideline prepared by the Commonwealth Secretariat formed the premise on which participants engaged in dialogue. The document provided an in-depth analysis of the educational achievements of boys in the Caribbean, inclusive of a literature review, and identified socialisation and gender issues. The document also presented case studies from Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago.
Participants, comprising a wide cross section of educators, were assigned the following objectives:
1. Reviewing the status of boys’ learning outcomes in Jamaica.
2. Determining key components for the design of a multisectoral policy framework/guidelines.
3. Identifying the investments and support required by Jamaica to move towards a multisectoral approach.
4. Contributing to the content and structure of the draft policy toolkit, including terms of relevance and adaptability.
5. Producing a document that outlines the status of education, policies, challenges, and the way forward.
Dr Winsome Gordon, Chief Executive officer of the JTC, was grateful for the opportunity to again open the conversation on the pedagogical approaches to boys’ educational outcomes, which encompasses issues contributing to their underachievement, differences in gender, and, more importantly, the strategies to be employed to mitigate these issues in future generations. Gordon stated that incremental improvements have been made in the system since the Boys in Education Programme was introduced in 2014. The programme, which is a partnership between the JTC and UNESCO, was piloted in 18 schools across the island. However, Gordon said that more needed to be done on a wider scale.
“This consultative forum will give stakeholders an avenue to explore the issues negatively affecting boys’ education in Jamaica and the Caribbean,” Gordon said, adding that one of the underlying challenges that boys in Jamaica faced was the breakdown of the family unit. She contended that in families where there is no father, boys tend to take on the responsibility of protector and/or provider in the home. This eventually leads to a lack of interest in their education and results in their underachievement, she said.
Professor Disraeli Hutton agreed with Gordon regarding
the breakdown of family life. He emphasised that parenting was crucial and that the role of fathers in the home does have an impact on a greater number of boys than girls. Hutton added, however, that there are other factors that affect boys’ education. These include school leadership and the quality of teachers.
EFFECTIVE SCHOOL MANAGEMENT
Hutton explained that studies have shown that effective school management also had a positive impact on boys. Concerning teachers’ colleges, he added that these institutions needed to revamp their curricula and place more focus on how teachers are prepared. He added that teachers currently in classrooms should develop a better understanding of boys – their genetic make-up, how they think and learn differently from girls – and differentiate their approaches to teaching.
Principals and teachers who attended the workshop were happy for the opportunity to be able to contribute to the proposed policy toolkit, which they believe is critical at this time in Jamaica’s history. They lamented that boys have consistently been left behind in the classroom because of the teaching methods that are employed while proposing that a project-based approach to learning be employed to engage boys.
According to MoEYI/LASCO Teacher of the Year 2018 Amarkard Brown, a project-based approach to teaching had been implemented at Munro College, and the institution has seen greater engagement and interest from students. Principal of Carron Hall High School Carlington Johnson agrees that different teaching approaches need to be engaged if the system wants to see improvements in boys’ achievements. Johnson said that Carron Hall High, whose student population is 70 per cent boys, had introduced a ‘Green classroom’ approach. The ‘green classroom’ concept involves a plot of land where a crop is planted. This crop (for example, Scotch bonnet pepper) is used to teach a mathematical concept or a science or English language topic. He confirmed that this technique has increased the students’ interest in their studies and has generated greater class participation. He also pointed out that the use of technology in classrooms was an important approach in engaging boys. The institution offers a wide range of technical and vocational subjects in order to engage more boys.
Several boys who attended the workshop were ecstatic that some interest was finally being shown in transforming boys’ low achievement in schools. Jordan Evans and Jahmelo Sterling, both students of Papine High School, expressed delight at being included in the workshop and stated emphatically that lessons taught in schools must be boy-friendly as boys do learn differently from girls. They agreed that boys like practical subjects and implored school leaders to implement more programmes along these lines.
Participants in the forum included education officers; principals; teachers; students; and representatives from the JTC, the National Education Inspectorate, the Core Curriculum Unit, independent schools, and the National Parenting Support Commission.