Over 4,700 applications processed for CPCE so far
The Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) has processed 4,705 applications for the 2022 cohort so far, with increasing submissions coming in from hinterland students.
CPCE’s Vice Principal of Development, Tamsin Henry Granville told DPI on Tuesday that the college is seeing an increase in applicants compared to that of 2021, where some 2,620 student teachers had applied.
“It has increased tremendously because we are now seeing an influx of our untrained teachers in the system who have now been mandated to become trained come September. So, the number has indeed increased.”
In 2021, the college launched its online training programme in face of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, trainees are still required to attend face- to- face sessions in order to complete their prevocational and secondary academic courses.
Granville said the college is offering professional development sessions to lecturers and trainees in an effort to build capacity in technology.
Meanwhile, the college has 11 hinterland or riverine centres in Regions One, Five, Seven, Eight, Nine and Ten which offer teacher upgrade and trained teachers’ certificate programmes.
The Ministry of Education has called for the expansion of the programmes being offered at the hinterland centres to ensure educators are in a better position to deliver quality education, even as Guyana moves towards a first-class education system.
To this end, Granville noted that an AD two-year programme will be added to the current programmes being offered.
Currently, pre-service students from hinterland communities in Regions One, Seven, Eight and Nine recently assumed residency at the college, to continue and access their training.
To ensure in-service students are afforded the same opportunities as their pre-service counterparts, the college is working to bring the in-service teachers to the CPCE when school closes. They will then be able to access courses that were missed from semesters one and two in order to complete their training.