The Ministry of Education is seeking to bring early childhood stakeholders up to date with good practices within the sector and region. This was done in the form of a national sensitization workshop entitled “Caribbean Early Childhood Development Good Practice Guide”.
Delivering the welcome remarks, Education Officer with responsibility for Early Childhood Education, Miss Ethny Williams, stated that “the workshop aims to provide a benchmark to ensure the highest standards in early childhood centres in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Miss Williams emphasized that the “Caribbean child must be enabled to succeed in early childhood settings that promote best practices”.
The workshop, Williams disclosed will focus on eight areas of best practices including: teacher and practitioner training, curriculum development, policies and regulations, early intervention, and designing learning environments – physical structures, among others. She wished participants a successful workshop over the two days. In that vein, she thanked the facilitators, Independent Consultant, Shawn Williams and Development Consultant Leon Charles, for sharing their expertise in this regard.
Deputy Chief Education Officer, Mrs. Elizabeth Walker, expressed her pleasure at the presence of a wide cross section of persons who impact early childhood education in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. “This speaks well for the development of this subsector”, Mrs. Walker said. She added that recently, “a lot of attention and resources have been allocated to the improvement of the quality of early [childhood] stimulation and this workshop is no exception.”
Walker reiterated the need for all boys and girls to have access to quality education. She hoped that their participation in the workshop will bring new insights to their teaching practice. The Deputy Chief Education Officer encouraged participants to share and to learn from each other. She used the opportunity to thank UNICEF and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) for funding the workshop.
The national sensitization workshop commenced on Monday 19th November, 2018 and concluded on the 20th. It was held at Frenches House.