Educator Says Children Learn Best When Their Interest is Aroused

Senior Territorial Education Officer at the Ministry of Education, Mrs. Yvonne McLeod, has said that children learn best when they are interested in a subject, or when they are stimulated to achieve an objective.
“Learning does not take place, until it can be demonstrated through application modes. Children learn best when their interest is aroused, or when they are stimulated towards achieving something that they are made aware of,” Mrs. McLeod said.
She was delivering the keynote address at the recent dedication of an Enrichment Centre at the Victoria Town Primary School, in Manchester, donated by telecommunications provider, Digicel.
Mrs. McLeod argued that when students are taught in ways that excite their wits, they assimilate and internalise the material in a way that helps them to meaningfully apply themselves in the teaching/learning process.
She told the audience, comprising teachers, students and parents, that the teaching of children could not be done by the schools alone. “It requires the input of parents and other stakeholders. Students have to be guided in how they obtain information. They have to be taught how to learn,” she emphasised.
Speaking on the theme: ‘Pedagogy Through Education’, Mrs. McLeod pointed out that tremendous strides could be made of computer aided teaching, as students “learn best through colourful and exciting curiosity, and they are stimulated through play and active interactions.”
“Students learn best when they can explore and experiment, when they are monitored, guided and motivated. And computer technology, through its various devices, facilitates all of these,” she added.
Mrs. McLeod commended the Principal of Victoria Town Primary, Mr. Paul Grant, for his drive in sourcing the Enrichment Centre from the Digicel Foundation. “If we set a goal or target, we should strategise to get there. No longer can we talk alone, we have to walk, so that we can experience our goals and objectives,” she stressed.