Greater accountability for teachers as government pushes for higher standards in nursery education

Teachers will now be held to a higher level of accountability as the Ministry of Education pushes for improved performance in the nursery education system across Guyana. This was revealed by Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand, during the recent commissioning of the Crane Nursery School on the West Coast of Demerara.

Minister Manickchand highlighted that over the next five years, the government will focus on ensuring every child is equipped with foundational skills from the nursery level.

“We are going to have to move to a place where Guyana is more accountable in the school system. We must measure what teachers do, we must measure their output, and whether they are effective in the classroom,” Manickchand said.

The Minister made it clear that children leaving a nursery class without essential skills – such as sounding out letters, identifying long and short vowel sounds, blending, and beginning to read by nursery year two – is unacceptable, unless the child has a disability. If a disability is identified, then that too will be properly addressed.

“Children must be numerate at an age-appropriate level. They must be able to write, and that requires different attention in the classroom,” Manickchand stated.

She urged teachers, especially nursery teachers, to take their roles seriously.

“If I had to teach, give me Grades Five and Six – don’t give me nursery. That is the hardest stage, in my view. So if this is not your thing, don’t do it. But don’t take a job and then come here and not deliver. You are failing entire households when you do that; you are failing the children, and we cannot have it,” Manickchand stressed.

Pointing to practices in private nursery schools, Manickchand said directors or headteachers assess each child termly to ensure progress, and if children are not learning, the teachers are sent home.

“In some schools, you’ll find ‘Miss Jenny’ is no longer there because her class couldn’t read. We don’t want to be employers without compassion, but our compassion must first be for the children,” the Education Minister stated.

She further urged headteachers to evaluate, manage, and support staff to ensure children leave with the skills they need.

However, the Minister noted, importantly, that the responsibility does not lie solely with the teachers.

Parents were also urged to play an active role in their child’s learning by ensuring punctual attendance and creating simple, engaging learning activities at home.

“When you go home every afternoon, you don’t have to run a big lesson, but you can have an alphabet chart on the wall or use clothes pegs on the line to help them build muscle,” Manickchand suggested.

Minister Manickchand outlined the government’s responsibility to build schools, furnish them, and train teachers. But she emphasised that teachers must show up and teach, and parents must support learning at home.

To date, the government has opened 54 new nursery schools across the country, demonstrating its commitment to strengthening early childhood education.