Teachers Encouraged to Foster Positive Environment for Children

Children’s Advocate, Diahann Gordon Harrison, has called on teachers to continue to play an integral role in creating stable environments for children, while delivering quality education for a prosperous society.

Mrs. Gordon Harrison was delivering the keynote address at a teachers’ luncheon and awards ceremony hosted by Kingston Bookshop, on Tuesday, May 6, at the Terra Nova Hotel, in Kingston.

“You stand as beacons in your respective schools and communities who are depending on you to build quality communities for our children,” she told the gathering, which mainly comprised teachers.

Noting that for children to become responsible adults, they need safe and stable environments, she said teachers are well placed to provide guidance in their development.

“These environments include the home, the school and the community at large. Teachers, by the very nature of their vocation, are strategically placed to influence these outcomes. During any given school week, it is teachers who play a central role in the lives of our children, and of such are great agents of socialization in their lives,” the Children’s Advocate said.

Adding that the “time is now” for individuals with good reputations to help to stem the abuse of children, Mrs. Gordon Harrison told the audience that if the tide of abuse and antisocial behaviour is not curbed, then “their (children’s) abilities to constructively contribute to Jamaica’s development will be significantly impaired”.

She stressed that teachers are not just imparters of knowledge, but also agents of change, and influence, nurturers, and caregivers.

“If ever there was a time in Jamaica that we need teachers to fulfill this role, the time is now. Too much is happening to our children, that is not right. Too many of them find themselves in vulnerable situations where they are exposed to harm; we must do something to be part of the solution,” the Children’s Advocate asserted.

Special awards were presented to Vice Principal of the Louise Bennett-Coverley All Age School, Audrey Pinnock-Fairweather; Senior Teacher at the Ken Wright Primary School, Herman Reid; Principal of the Vauxhall High School, Angela Chaplain; and Vice Principal of the Excelsior High School, Allison Peart.

Meanwhile, scores of other educators were feted by Kingston Bookshop.