THE migration pattern of Guyanese teachers has changed significantly over the past few years, and this is no longer a major concern for the Education Ministry, but rather they have seen teachers returning to Guyana to enter the education system. This is according to Education Minister Priya Manickchand, who was responding to a question from a media representative at a recent press conference in the boardroom of the National Centre for Educational Resource Development (NCERD), Kingston.
70 Percent Trained Teachers
Manickchand indicated that in many schools there is a surplus of teachers, most of whom are trained since Guyana has moved from having 30 to 70 percent trained teachers in the education system.
She remarked that the ministry believes that there is a strong correlation between the number of trained teachers and the performance of students, and this is evident in examination results.
According to her, the ministry does not believe that they should huddle around bad results because it’s not their responsibility to change them, but rather it is the entire country that must be on the trajectory to making sure that Guyana’s children do well.
Manickchand affirmed that in the event of any weaknesses or faults within the education system, the ministry will be the first to pronounce on them because they want the input of members of the public to rectify them.
Pointing out that the ratio of teacher to students in most primary schools is one teacher to twenty-five students, she asserted that the ministry wants to see this come down to as low as one teacher to fifteen students, which will make it more likely for children to do well.
She highlighted that they are even going further with the training at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE), since they will be taking trained teachers as far as the level of a degree.