Dear Editor,

We have long employed the approach of educational transformation within our country.

This kind of transformation is undoubtedly focused on the improvement of academic performance. I wholeheartedly agree that this is a step in the right direction because it is through meaningful intervention that real change will be realised. But, if there is ever a time that we need a systemised approach to transform the minds of our youth population, that time is now. Yet the nation awaits, with bated breath, the implementation of structured and sustainable programmes to rescue our children from the callousness, selfishness, and violence taught to them by our society.

Education is dynamic and expansive, but what we all know is that there is a strong correlation between students’ academic performance and their behaviour. Therefore, it is my view that a solid education is achieved when a balance is created between academic achievement and character development.

Our country has recently suffered shock, disappointment, and despair due to the spate of violent attacks within our schools. Does this become an acceptable behaviour if the students involved score satisfactorily to exceptionally on the academic scale yet lack the social skills which will aid significantly in controlling their impulses? Do we simply apply punishment for such undesirable behaviour, hoping that the convicted will feel it so harshly that the action will never be repeated? Will young people learn the right behaviour from simply observing the punishment of others?

It must be deeply considered that any approach towards educational transformation must include strategies which target desirable behavioural patterns. One such strategy is that of instituting structured behavioural programmes within our schools which are geared towards the enrichment of students’ psycho-social development. For instance, a behavioural framework may be designed with social and emotional learning (SEL) central to its formulation. This framework will help students to understand and manage their own emotions. They will therefore be able to make better behavioural decisions, thus treating others with a greater level of understanding and respect.

Another significant strategy which our education system needs to take seriously is that of purposefully and actively engaging our parents in their children’s learning – be it academic or social. While there are parenting workshops hosted by the Ministry of Education, schools, and various parent-teacher associations, there is dire need for this parent involvement to be better structured, one which not merely accommodates visits but seeks to educate parents, enhance their parenting skills, and most importantly, hold them accountable for their role within the educational sphere.

The fact is, there is a vast number of our parents who are clueless about the educational process and its significance. Parents need to understand their responsibility in the socialisation process — instilling positive attitudes, values, and discipline within their children — and how this connects with the roles and responsibilities of the school. Lest we forget, the home is indeed the first school.

As a nation we need to understand that any step toward high levels of educational attainment must be balanced and strategic. Hence, the same effort we exert for academic excellence should be exerted for the development of social skills. We also need to acknowledge parents as important stakeholders within the teaching-learning process and engage them fully towards the holistic development of our nation’s children.

I am certain that the application of these methods and being more proactive and less reactive will more efficiently effect the educational change that Jamaica needs now.

Karen Strachan

strachankaren@yahoo.com