THE Observer yesterday honoured lecturers of the newspaper’s weekly education publication – the Study Centre – and 40 primary and high schools across the 14 parishes with the highest volume of Study Centre sales for the year.

Among the 40 schools honoured, five received special prizes for having the highest volume of sales islandwide. These included: Naggo Head Primary, which earned first place out of more than 300 schools; George Headley Primary, which came in second; Jessie Ripoll Primary for taking third place; Corinaldi Primary which came in at fourth place and Pembroke Hall Primary, fifth.

Senior education officer for primary schools James Spencer, speaking at the Observer’s Annual Teachers’ Awards Luncheon at the Pegasus Hotel in Kingston, praised the publication, noting that it has been widely used throughout schools across the island and has been of tremendous benefit to its users.

“Some teachers with whom I have spoken have attested to its effectiveness and to the extent to which the youngsters are fascinated by the way the lessons are structured and presented,” he said.

“Students can benefit from any initiative which makes learning interesting and which brings some worthwhile substance to the teaching-learning experience is indeed something to be commended,” Spencer added.

More than eight years ago the Observer started its education thrust by publishing what was then the Common Entrance publication, authored by the late George Abrahams, and eight subject lessons in the CXC Lecture Series.

After the Common Entrance Examination was replaced by the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) in 1999, the publication was updated to include GSAT lessons, tests and answers, written by four GSAT curriculum writers for the Ministry of Education, Youth and Culture. Two years later, the section was renamed the Study Centre and more pages were added to include additional CXC and GSAT lessons as well as a section devoted to verbal reasoning and mathematics for the Scholastic Aptitude Test.

Making reference to the company’s significant investment in education, the Observer’s managing director, Mark Pritchett said the continued investment was important and needful in a sector facing serious challenges today.

“There is hope in big measure in Jamaica and that hope rests with the children at every level,” he said. “I believe that teachers must (also) be the subject of continued investment.

Once this programme of investment is in provision it has to be sustained,” if teachers are to effectively carry out their jobs, he added.

The view was supported by editor-in-chief Paget deFreitas, who affirmed that the Study Centre, which has twice the circulation of the paper’s nearest competitor, was fundamental to the newspaper’s existence.

“We know that a society cannot survive or exist in the absence of an educated, literate population. No newspaper can survive in the absence of that environment. We are building the next generation of Observer readers and. working also towards the advancement of the Jamaican society.”

The editor-in-chief thanked all the teachers for assisting the paper in aiding the country’s transformation.