HALSE HALL, Clarendon — Strengthened by a science workshop over the summer break, two teachers from schools in alumina company Jamalco’s operating areas are looking forward to using new teaching techniques.

A release from Jamalco has identified the two educators as Nathaniel Byrd of Foga Road High School in Clarendon and Zeta Edmund-Wright of Pratville Primary and Infant School in South Manchester .

Both teachers participated in the Key Issues one-week workshop organised by the Keystone Science School and sponsored by the Alcoa Foundation and Jamalco in Denver, Colorado, USA during July.

Based on feedback from the teachers, the workshop did this and more, Jamalco said.

“The programme was very hands-on and was a wonderful experience,” Byrd was reported as saying.

“It was not only geared to teaching science, but the methodologies can be used in teaching Mathematics, Social Studies and English,” he added while speaking recently with Jamalco’s Corporate Services and Government Affairs Manager Leo Lambert about the experience.

“The high point for me was the water sampling project, which was very practical and is something I can do with my students,” he explained.

Edmund-Wright agreed. “We worked in groups and went on several field trips, including one to a gold mine. I am thinking of introducing more field trips for my students this academic year,” she said.

The summer education experience was described as a “teacher professional development training programme that provides middle-level educators with the process skills and confidence to investigate environmental issues with their students using Keystone Science School’s non-biased framework”.

Both teachers were pleased with the fact that they were able to share lesson plans with colleagues from the US, Canada and Australia and had received a wealth of material from the schools that they will share with their colleagues.

Lambert challenged the teachers to share their new-found knowledge with other teachers. “If you can share this wealth of information with your colleagues, not only in your schools, but across the education system and so enrich your students’ learning experience, then your trip would have been worth it,” he said.