As everything begins and ends with education, public school administrators were encouraged to work to reduce the number of children who "continuously fall through the cracks" by Minister of Education, Science and Technology Jerome Fitzgerald during a recently-held public schools administrators' workshop.
Fitzgerald challenged administrators to look within themselves for the passion that drew them to the profession. He asked them to embrace the opportunities that exist to improve academic performance and mold students to become confident contributors to national development. He implored them to work together as an unbreakable and united force to see a change in education.
"Right now that [child who falls through the cracks] represents 50 percent of the student population who do not graduate and leave school after 12 years with an attendance certificate. Quite frankly that is unacceptable," said Fitzgerald.
The education minister said that the country could not afford either socially or financially for half of the public school students to leave from the public schools and centers without a graduation diploma.
He told the administrators that education, not money, is the cure for poverty, and that education, and not prison, is the solution to crime. As such, Fitzgerald said there is a lot of work to be done in education and much room for improvement. This after the national Bahamas General Certificate of Secondary Examination (BGCSE) and Bahamas Junior Certificate (BJC) results improved marginally, and reflected a level of increase not seen in the past five years.
The number of students receiving E through G grades decreased, while the number receiving A through D grades has increased.
Fitzgerald told administrators that he expected even better results for the 2014-2015 school year. And that junior and senior school principals should develop strategies to improve on the 2013-2014 results, and in light of the implementation of the national standardized high school diploma guide principals for incoming 10th grade students so that they could devise intervention strategies to give the students the best opportunity to earn a high school diploma.
The administrators were told that there were many factors outside of their control, but that they could control the quality of leadership for administrators, training for instructors, intervention for students and accountability up and down the system.
"Unlike the independent schools, the public school system does not have the luxury of choosing its students. We must take them as they are -- some socially, mentally and even sexually broken, some hungry and aggressive -- but it is because the greatest challenge is put on the public system that the greatest opportunity also exists. That is the challenge we must embrace," said Fitzgerald.
Administrators were encouraged to embrace the challenge by making the education system more relevant to national needs, and more relevant to students' interests. He told them that the education department would dedicate more resources and time to that 50 percent that traditionally does not graduate.
To do so, the educators were told that four areas needed to be impacted to improve student achievement -- mentorship for those persons aspiring to the role of administration, which would include a period of mentorship; continuous and ongoing teacher training; finding ways to engage and encourage parents to understand the importance of being involved in their children's education; and establishing an achievement unit with responsibility for using data to assist the ministry and administrators with making informed decisions on intervention strategies for students or schools.
Fitzgerald said education is a complex business, and that they have tried as much as possible to simplify the approach and put greater emphasis both with human and financial resources on the students who continually fall through the cracks.
"Education is the great equalizer. We want every child and every parent to realize that education offers hope for them to either change their circumstances, and/or pursue whatever dreams and ambitions they possess," said Fitzgerald.

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