NASSAU, The Bahamas – Mrs. Lorraine Armbrister, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education (MOE), touted the partnership between the MOE and the Catholic Board of Education since the Sisters of Charity established the first Catholic school in The Bahamas in 1889.

Mrs. Armbrister addressed the 2019 Caribbean Association of Catholic Teachers’ Biennial Conference (CACT) recently, on behalf of the Hon. Jeffrey Lloyd, Minister of Education, and Senator the Hon. Dion Foulkes, Minister of Labour.

The CACT commemorated its silver anniversary, July 20-25, 2019 at Melia Nassau Beach.  The purpose of the conference: to bring local teacher associations together for spiritual, professional and social development.  The theme for the conference -- ‘Silver Past, Golden Future – Committed to Love, Teach and Serve.’  Among the delegates, there were 100 educators and clergy from Abaco, Grand Bahama and New Providence, and representatives of Antigua & Barbuda, Trinidad & Tobago, Dominica, and Jamaica.

Mrs. Armbrister informed the delegates that as the second largest single provider of education in The Bahamas, the MOE looks forward to continued collaboration with the Catholic Church.

“A sound education combined with strong family life is the greatest determinant of a good quality of life, and indeed we know of many instances in which a good, solid educational background has done much to fill the gap in instances where the family structure has been eroded in both The Bahamas and the wider Caribbean,” she said.

She said it is important for the Catholic education system to remain focused on its core value of promoting the dignity of the individual, and ensuring that each child receives a quality education.

“The Catholic system must not be caught up the current unfortunate trend which has emerged in The Bahamas and elsewhere where education is provided purely for the sake of financial gain or self-aggrandizement. Opportunities such as this one, which provide you with an opportunity for self-reflection and renewal, remain forever necessary and timely.

“It is for this reason that the faith-based education delivered by not just Catholics, but by so many other sister Christian denominations, Anglicans, Methodists, Baptists, and others, and by independent schools in The Bahamas have been so very critical in aiding us to meet the educational, moral, social, and psychological needs of our young people. These types of partnerships are essential, and we in the MOE know that they will continue to contribute to the improvement of the Bahamian Educational system in totality. The Catholic presence in these islands has and will continue to assist us in fulfilling the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Number Four, that is of ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all,” she said.

Mrs. Armbrister acknowledged the importance of service, and the spiritual and cultural aspects of the conference for the delegates.

“This we know is vital, since our overarching aim is to provide a standard of education which does more than produce acceptable examination results, but rather extends to developing the whole child.  Our students must develop other characteristics such as social awareness, resiliency and team spirit, in order to become effective community builders.

“Our vision at the MOE is to foster academic excellence, social responsibility and equip students with multiple literacies that will enable them to make meaningful contributions as nation builders who are globally competitive.  We recognize that our students need to have imparted to them those skills, which will prepare them for life; and the sessions slated for this conference are clearly embracing that challenge, by encouraging our instructional leaders to focus on these key areas.

“Enhanced Professional Development is, in fact, only one of our major goals in the MOE. It is clear also that the education agenda of the present and the future must place equal emphasis on student interest as it does on improving student aptitude; must not focus solely on academic rigor, [but also] must provide enhanced opportunities for technical and vocational educational and training as it does on reading, writing and arithmetic; and must be driven at its core by technology, if our students are to survive in our daily evolving world.

“It is for this reason that we at the Ministry of Education are placing renewed emphasis on achieving several other critical goals, including universal pre-school access by 2025, five years ahead of the UN target date of 2030; achieving an 85% minimum graduation rate in all government schools by 2030; completing the complete digitization and internet connectivity of all government schools and ancillary buildings throughout The Bahamas within the next few years -- including the provision of tablets to all pre and primary schools, and the provision of laptops, projectors  and related equipment to all junior and senior high students and their teachers, at an initial investment of $17 million.

Mrs. Armbrister said MOE is keenly aware that it does not have all of the answers and has much to learn from faith-based partners, and other educational institutions.  She told the delegates that the Ministry continues to rely on them to give advice and direction.