Specialist Mathematics Teacher Training programme commences at NCERD

Over the next four days, 30 teachers from across Region Four will be engaged in a Specialist Mathematics Teacher Training programme.

The programme aims to prepare primary school teachers to serve as Specialist Mathematics Teachers of the Number and Operations Strand of Grades One to Four curriculum and develop a repository of resources for them to utilize when planning their sessions. The programme is being hosted in NCERD’s auditorium and is a collaboration with the Government of Canada through the Canada Caricom Expert Employment Programme (CCEP).

During brief remarks, Director of NCERD, Ms Quenita Walrond-Lewis said that the programme plays a significant part in the rollout of the renewed curriculum. She explained that while the new Mathematics curriculum is guided by international best practices, it is contextually prepared for Guyana.

“We are not plucking and transplanting. We are assessing what is good what is quality, and what is best for our indigenous setting because that is the only way that these initiatives work. When we take the best that we can find around them and adapt for our context.”

She added that also aligns with the education sector plan to create citizens who are critical thinkers, problem solvers, and who are future stewards of this nation.

“So, we are excited because we get to do a new thing in primary mathematics education where we bring learning back to the hearts of children, back to play, back to pedagogy that requires us to be curious, experimental, ask questions and seek answers in ways that are endemic to the ways that children learn naturally which is through manipulation and experimenting implementation.”

Chief Education Officer, Dr Marcel Huston deemed the programme as transformative for primary education and urged the participants to view the sessions as such.

“When we look at our strategic plan 2021-2025 Vision 2030, you will see that Mathematics is central to what we need to do in terms of reforming the school system for better results.”

High Commissioner of Canada to Guyana, His Excellency Mark Berman highlighted this is the first in-person technical assistance initiative through CCEP being carried out in Guyana. He further expressed that this will be the first in many areas of expertise Canada can bring to Guyana to work with professionals in several sectors.