Education Stakeholders Encouraged to Foster Culture of Inclusion

Sector stakeholders are being encouraged by Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Most Hon. Juliet Holness, to foster a culture of inclusion to advance educational transformation.

“We need for persons to get back to that space, where they understand [that] it requires every single party to ensure that we can transform education,” she emphasised.

Mrs. Holness, who is also Member of Parliament for St. Andrew East Rural, was speaking recently during the Teachers’ Colleges of Jamaica (TCJ) graduation ceremony at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona.

This year’s cohort of almost 800 new teachers achieved the Bachelor of Education Degree, conferred by the University.

Mrs. Holness emphasised that the best outcomes in the education sector can only be achieved through continuous participation by educators, family members, business interests, and the Government.

“For too long, parents have blamed the students, the students blame the teachers, and the teachers blame the Government. In a triangle, all the angles face inward. The principle to which we are being invited then, [is] we need to face each other in the collaborative space to achieve the desirable outcomes,” she maintained.

The Deputy Speaker said ascribing blame holds little value in fixing issues within the sector, and encouraged stakeholders to, instead, be “consistent, honest and respectful in dialogue with each other.”