We must take another look at the way we educate

25.SEP.09

Editor: We’re into another school year and I do believe that there has been little or no change in the way we educate our children. We continue to place emphasis on the traditional subjects at the expense of sports and music. I know that the Ministry of Education has a Curriculum Unit, but I do believe that this should be a joint exercise between the Ministry, the SVGTU and I would involve NESDEC.{{more}} We must prepare our people to meet our local challenges while at the same time having an international outlook.

Subjects like Physical Education, Sports and Music should be integral parts of the school curriculum, but there seems to be a problem of not enough available time. Despite this, schools seem to be able to find time for Religious Education and Singing. The religious Education that is taught in schools here is really Christian Education and should be so named. Religious Education should teach children about the fundamental beliefs of different religions.

Many of the topics I see on the primary school curriculum nowadays were not there in my time but were taught them at the secondary school level. We are trying to get our children to learn too many things in the name of education, but education is not really about having children walking around with a lot of information in their heads but training them to think and analyze in a particular way. The thing about information is that it is not necessary to have it all in your head, but to know where to find it when you need it.

Our approach to education would lead me to believe that Asafa Powell and Usain Bolt had to sacrifice their academic work in order to become great athletes, but I know better.

Countries like USA and Cuba place a lot of emphasis on sports and music in their schools, and their children still excel academically. Are we not doing something wrong? We are leaving our children with minimal options, therefore many students, especially males, find the system monotonous and boring and are always anxious to leave, whether or not they have completed.

We have to take another look at the way we are educating our children.

The Mystic