December deadline set for Education CoI – PS

The ongoing Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the Public Education Sector will be wrapped up by December 2016, according to Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education Delma Nedd.
The CoI is mandated to investigate and hold hearings across the country on the state of the sector, and provide a report outlining recommendations for the enhancement of public education delivery.

Nedd made this disclosure on Wednesday during a press conference to announce Guyana’s performance in the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations and the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE).
“The ministry has commenced its Commission of Inquiry so that is ongoing and is expected to conclude in December this year. The inquiry is strategically aligned to have consultations with parents, stakeholders, guardians, the private sector and so on. We are asking everyone to come on board and give your feedback as to how we can improve our students’ performance across the country,” she stated.
The second round of consultations of the inquiry is ongoing with a session held on Friday and another set for Tuesday.
In this round, the commissioners are targeting stakeholders such as religious leaders, teachers, administrative staff and students of the Cyril Potter College of Education, the University of Guyana, and the Guyana Teachers’ Union.
Religious communities desirous of making an input can do so at next week’s session to be held at the National Centre for Educational Resource Development (NCERD) building, Kingston, Georgetown.
Some of the organisations engaging the CoI are the Guyana Society of Jesus, the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha, and the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana.
In addition, the CoI will hear from the Private Sector Commission today (August 19); UG and CPCE on September 20, and the GTU on September 22.
Meanwhile, the third and final round of consultation will see the CoI travelling to various regions to get the feedback from residents about their perception of the state of the education system as well as recommendations for its enhancement.
These series of engagements will commence in September and stretch into November.
Recommendations from the consultation will be used to develop administrative policies and legislations to govern the education sector.