All CPCE trainees to get salaries from January – Manickchand

…sweeping changes in store for the College

For the first time in education history, Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) students who are training in the system will be earning an in-service salary, commencing from January 2023.
This introduction of wages was announced by Education Minister Priya Manickchand on Friday, as she commissioned a new CPCE facility in Vreed-en-Hoop on the West Coast of Demerara.

“From January next year, we’re going to make sure that every teacher, even as you train, you are receiving a salary as an in-service teacher. Every single one of you…We’re giving you a place to come and be the best you can be by learning and making yourself developed. We’re giving you a salary – something that has never been done before with all the teachers in the system,” the Minister told the aspiring teachers.
Currently, only persons living in the dorms would be given a stipend of about $11,000. Now, this will be modified so that every CPCE student receives a salary.
“They’ll be in schools even as they are learning and so they are going to be paid,” she noted.
This is not the only change in store for the CPCE, in keeping with expectations of excellence in education and establishing quality assurance measures. Manickchand explained that the sector needs persons that will change communities and educators who are committed to the job.
Speaking on this, she highlighted, “How they are perceived may be harsh because they are going to be different. We have to move to a place where we have quality assurance…meaning someone coming behind the work done to see it was of quality and delivered equitably.”
The College currently has 2600 first year students – a result of the college going fully online in 2021 and increased reach across its regional centres.
Chief Education Officer, Dr Marcel Hutson underscored that this trajectory and input into education should not cease. Now more than ever, he said persons are needed in the classroom who can inspire and contribute to the vision of having a world class education system.
“We can’t have a world class education system with persons who are not of a certain standard to deliver.”
Hutson added that every child is born gifted and as such, teachers need to know how to extract qualities that will realise their full potential. He noted that there are children all over the country who are waiting for educators to come and change their lives.
“Every child is born gifted so we have to know what to do to draw out what is inside of them. It is what you do in the classroom that is fundamental to whether that child will be successful or not. So, you should have high expectations of your children as they come in front of you. The Ministry of Education is treating this matter seriously,” the CEO outlined.
It was outlined that the level of performance at all levels also need to be raised, requiring a correlated approach in exceptional educational delivery throughout the system. At the same time, he said the Ministry must have accountability for his stewardship.
The Region Three Centre of CPCE was established in 1996 for in-service teachers only. Today, 300 persons are registered at the institution. Through this expansion, students can do any discipline that the Turkeyen campus is offering.
Principal Noella Joseph stated that the College has to enhance its centres to cater for staff and teachers. Blended modalities, larger physical spaces and online mechanisms became an integral necessity, having seen an influx of persons gaining admission at the institution within the past two years.
“The online programme triggered an exponential increase in our student population and this became a catalyst for the Ministry of Education to achieve one of its strategic goals, which is to furnish our education system with 100 per cent trained teachers by 2025,” the principal said. (G12)