Two speeches in Monday’s newspaper carried a similar message, be it in a different form. They were delivered during Sunday’s inaugural Back-to-School Expo at the Aleeze Convention Center.
Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports (ECYS) Melissa Gumbs hit the nail on the head when she called literacy and numeracy some of the main issues facing young people. Pupils should be able to read and write confidently as well as master basic arithmetic by the end of primary school.
The former strengthens their vocabulary and supports self-expression. The latter is to make them comfortable enough with numbers so mathematics stops being something they fear and becomes a tool they can use.
The minister rightly pointed out that this concerns not just a matter of physical resources, identifying time as a key investment from teachers, but also parents and the students themselves. She added that Artificial Intelligence (AI) cannot replace the need for basic foundational skills such as reading, writing and critical thinking.
Police Inspector Felix Richards called for listening to youngsters more and judging them less. With today’s bullying and digital risks, communication and understanding are perhaps more important than ever.
Parents were advised to lead by example, while they and other members of the community ought to teach children kindness, empathy and respect. The latter must know they can approach adults for example when something online makes them uncomfortable.
The underlying reality in both cases seems to be that developing articulate and well-spoken youngsters with favourable career prospects requires basic skills as well as an environment where they are stimulated to openly discuss what’s on their mind. “No because I told you so,” is simply not good enough any more.
