…want teacher-to-student ratio to be respected
Teachers across the 10 Administrative Regions in Guyana are objecting to marking the School Based Assessments (SBAs) which they are required to do prior to the sitting of the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) secondary exams.
The issue of being obligated to mark the SBAs was raised during one of the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) conferences.
According to information provided by GTU General Secretary Coretta McDonald, most of the teachers who hold the responsibility of marking SBAs had raised the issue of marking them for free, citing their opposition.
Although the SBAs are only done within Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Form for the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations (CAPE), teachers hold the belief that it should not be their duty to mark these assessments.
However, McDonald said that the teachers indicated that they had no problem with aiding the students with the completion of the projects, and offering guidance and correction where necessary, but that should be their only task in regard to these projects.
The teachers are, therefore, proposing that the Ministry reviews the system for marking SBAs.
McDonald said that the proposal is to have the SBAs sent to CXC for marking.
This would be after the teachers had made their contribution by giving guidelines throughout the course of the project.
The teachers have also come up with a Plan B as to how the SBAs can be marked if the Council declines to mark them. They are suggesting that if the SBAs are marked by the school, teachers be paid for this extra work.
McDonald informed Guyana Times that these proposals have already been discussed with the Education Ministry and further consultations are needed to arrive at a decision.
The Union is hoping that the Ministry acts in its favour on this matter.
Teacher-to-student ratio
Meanwhile, the Union and teachers are reiterating the call for the teacher-to-student ratio to be addressed promptly.
Teachers are arguing that the large number of students being assigned to one teacher is affecting classroom learning and one-on-one interaction.
According to McDonald, the Union continues to push for this with the Ministry, but thus far there have been no response on a decision.
The Union believes that constitutional reform is needed in order to eliminate delays in addressing matters on the GTU front-burner.
As highlighted in its memorandum of agreement, the Union is proposing class sizes be cut down based on the grade.
The ratio of students to teachers agreed on is 15 students to 1 teacher for nursery schools, 20 to 1 for Grades 1 and 2, 25 to 1 for Grades 3 throughout 6, 25 to 1 for secondary schools and 15 to 1 for practical instructional centres.
The Union believes that with this being introduced in the public school sector, learning would become more effective in the classroom as teachers would have the opportunity to address the needs of each student based on their capability.
Over the past months, the Union has said it would continue to bargain for the rights of its teachers and have consultations on their behalf to have its proposals implemented.
