Come next academic year, the Maria Holder Nursery School, located in Gall Hill, Christ Church, will become a ‘Centre of Excellence’.
Minister of Education, Technological and Vocational Training, Kay McConney, made the announcement earlier today, while speaking at an Early Childhood Symposium at Solidarity House.
The symposium, a collaborative effort with the Ministry and UNICEF, was held by the Child Care Board as part of its activities to mark Child Month 2024.
Ms. McConney, stated: “Emerging research is telling us that play based learning when we make it fun for children to learn, they actually want to learn and their relationship with learning going forward, makes a difference. Our Ministry of Education will be invested in collaboration with some of our international partners, in what is called a ‘Centre of Excellence in Early Childhood Education’.”
The Education Minister explained that the nursery school, which was also referred to as a laboratory school, would focus on teaching along the STREAM line, that is: Science, Technology, Reading, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics.
She revealed that the laboratory school would also serve as a centre for research and training and would become a model for other schools that accommodate three-to four-year-olds.
Ms. McConney also confirmed that a pilot project has been conducted, in which 30 teachers have been trained to date. She revealed that plans are continuing with a view of rolling out the programme in the upcoming academic year.
“We will not reach excellence immediately. But what we want for you to do is to believe in the science and the evidence that if we make it fun for children to learn they will want to learn. Therefore, we will be better able to create what I call and what we at the Ministry consider to be a solid foundation.”
Explaining some of the groundwork that went into the project, Minister McConney said: “We have spent the last several months together, strategic planning, thinking through things, working through what is required, and certainly early childhood education is very high on our agenda. I think that what we have often heard is that it takes a village to raise a child; however, in 2024, it takes a whole country to raise a child.”
The Early Childhood Symposium entitled: ‘Ready, Set, Go! The future is at our fingertips!’ concludes tomorrow, Friday, May 31.