Teachers’ Professional Day will be observed this Friday, October 23, and all public schools will be closed to students.
The day is part of the activities to mark Education Month, which is being celebrated under the theme: Adapting to Changes in the 21st Century.
The Ministry of Education, Technological and Vocational Training has encouraged management of schools across the island to organise activities for the development of their institutions. Some of them are expected to be virtual, given the COVID-19 pandemic.
At the Maria Holder Nursery School, Oldbury, St. Philip, teachers will focus on: Re-imagining the Roles and Responsibilities of the Barbadian Social Worker To Directly Influence Our Educational System in the COVID-19 Era and Beyond. This will be facilitated by social worker Desiree Benn at the school, from 9:00 a.m.
At Eden Lodge Nursery School, teachers will be making age-appropriate charts and activities, based on the curriculum. They will be facilitated in this venture by Media Resource Officer, Gale Gooding, at the school in Eden Lodge, St. Michael, also from 9:00 a.m.
Teachers from Blackman and Gollop Primary will engage in a wellness activity at the school, located at Staple Grove, Christ Church, from 9:30 a.m. This will be followed by an exercise in Coding – Ins and Outs, to be facilitated by one of the teachers, Kimberley Hossana.
At St. Stephen’s Primary School, in Black Rock, St. Michael, where textbooks have been removed from the curriculum, teachers will continue to work on developing modules that cover their curriculum content – instructional materials that will replace the textbooks. They are culturally relevant, developmentally appropriate and may be used across the age groups.
Principal Colin Cumberbatch, along with subject coordinators, will facilitate the session, beginning at 9:30 a.m.
Teachers from St. Luke-Brighton will assemble at Ball Park, Newton, Christ Church, from 9:00 a.m., where they will examine reading methodologies, mental health issues and engage in team building exercises. There will also be a session on Planning for Retirement: Pensions and Gratuity, facilitated by Senior Pensions Officer at the Treasury Department, Natalie Strickland.
At Harrison College, on Crumpton Street, St. Michael, two sessions will be hosted for teachers. The first on Safeguarding Teachers’ Mental Health in a COVID-19 Environment will be facilitated by Psychiatrist Dr. Jo-Anne Brathwaite Drummond, while the second will be on Pension and Gratuity by Mark Hurley. They will begin at 9:30 a.m.
Meanwhile, the Professional Development Committee at the Frederick Smith Secondary School will be undertaking the task of training their colleagues in Google Suite and Add-ons. Aimed at enhancing the teaching/learning environment, the session starts at 9:30 a.m. at the institution, located at Trents, St. James.