Funds Allocated for Basic School and Teacher Resource Centre in Clarendon

Construction on the Foga Road Basic School in Clarendon and a teacher resource centre for the parish is expected to be completed this fiscal year.

The work will be carried out under the Enhancement of Basic Schools Project, for which a sum of $137.8 million has been set aside in the 2012/2013 Estimates of Expenditure, now before the House of Representatives.

The project, which is funded by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and the Government of Jamaica and which originally started in April 2002, aims to enable young children to learn and develop optimally.

The allocation for the fiscal year will also provide for the furnishing and equipping of the basic school; completion of National Council on Technical Vocational Education and Training (NCTVET) Level III certification for 240 practitioners; and conclude the project evaluation consultancy.

Up to January 2012 a number of targets were met, including: the establishment of a project implementation unit; collection and analysis of baseline data; completion of island wide sensitisation workshops on the new learning environment; NCTVET level II training for 680 early childhood practitioners; and NCTVET Assessors training for 80 education officers.

Construction and renovation activities were also undertaken at the Hope Village, Yallahs, Stephen James, DRB Grant, Fern Grove and Nain Basic Schools, and the Shortwood Practising School; and at the Manchester, St. Thomas, St. James, Trelawny, St. Catherine, and St. Ann teacher resource centres.          

Meanwhile, the following basic schools were furnished and equipped: Yallahs, Hope Village, DRB Grant, Torrington, Stephen James, Fern Grove, Nain, Arthur Wint, St. Francis, and Highgate.

Additionally, the verification of 2,700 early childhood institutions was completed, so too registration, legal and regulatory framework consultancies, while nine early childhood officers finished their fellowships, and 680 Level II practitioners and 80 education officers were trained.

The CDB is providing $131.9 million of the funds.

By Alphea Saunders, JIS Senior Reporter