Ministry of Education on Home-Based Learning Tools
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04/23/20 05:13 AM
04/23/20 05:13 AM
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MOE Re-Emphasizes Response and Action for Pre-Primary, Primary and Secondary SchoolsDeputy Chief Education Officer Cecilia Ramirez Smith was the featured guest on today’s Ask the Experts Webcast. Students are at home doing home-based learning and so the Ministry of Education is adjusting it programmes. Smith presented further details outlining the Ministry of Education’s response and action taken for pre-primary, primary and secondary education during this period of the state of emergency. She says that a number of methods will be used to offer short lessons to students during the state of emergency. She explains: Cecilia Smith, Deputy Education Chief Officer“At the pre-primary and primary levels what we are trying to do is that we are going to use online resources. The main platform would be the Ministry of Education’s website and we are going to upload weekly lessons on that platform for students at the pre-primary, which as we know it to be pre-school and as well as primary. The next thing we are going to do is to reformat those same lessons in a package that will be compatible for radio broadcast. So, we are hoping to reach more students if we are able to produce the same set of instructional lessons for those who might be in rural areas and might not have easy access to internet or data and so they can listen in on the radio. It is really going to be short lessons, fifteen to twenty minutes per day per grade level. So, all the students will need to do is to pay attention to the broadcast schedule and tune in at that time and get the lesson for the day. Then there is one other group that we are going to try and reach, the students who don’t have either access to the data or the radio. So, we are going to try and prepare some print resources. These will be in line with what we are putting online and what we are broadcasting on radio so students will only need to get access to those print resources and over the course of a week or two weeks they will work through the print resources that will become available to them.”When it comes to the secondary schools, Smith says that a similar approach may be taken but some aspects may vary because of the level and age groups involved. She notes that the high schools play a critical approach in the implementation of these short term academic measures.MOE Says School Work During SOE Not Meant to be Assessed for GradesAnd continuing on the matter of education, Cecilia Ramirez Smith says that the lessons and work being given to students from the pre-primary, to high school levels must not be assessed for grades. She says that the work itself is to keep students engaged and to help reinforce important skills but not meant to be structured, formal work that would require long hours of work and elaborate projects. Cecilia Ramirez-Smith, Deputy Chief Education Officer“We do not expect that students at this level will be assessed formally in any way during this period. It is the very reason why we have gone ahead and cancelled the national standardized exams at this level because this is not the time for that. We do want to keep them engaged but we are not concerned about making sure they get a particular grade on a particular subject at this time. So, what we want teachers at the pre-primary and primary level are to make sure that you are in touch with your students. One of the things we don’t want to hear at these two levels is students working on major projects. When classes were called off in March, the Ministry opened a hotline to allow us to engage with the population to find out how they are doing and what challenges they are facing all with the intention to help them work through this difficult time and many of the complaints we received for students at the primary level is that they had to engage on elaborate projects; they had to build solar system; and none of that is necessary during this time. What we want to do is for students to continue to learn in a fun and interactive way that will appeal to their senses during this time because it is a difficult time. So, we want teachers to remember that.”Again when it comes to the secondary level, Smith says that the approach may be a little different and there is some flexibility in how students are engaged.MOE Offers Online Resources for Teachers…and while the ministry has called on teachers to play a critical role during this time that classes remain closed, today Cecilia Ramirez Smith says that they are also making some resources available for all teachers. Those resources include online material to offer support to help them transition to distance learning. Cecilia Smith, Deputy Chief Education Officer“We also want them to pay attention to their own professional development. So, during this period, the Ministry will offer at least two online professional development sessions for teachers. One of them is focused on psycho-social support for teachers. It is a difficult time and we are concerned about the well-being of teachers and so we are going to organize a training session that focuses on that area. The other one has to do with helping teachers to transition to online learning. It is not black and white and it is not the same as I teach you in a face to face session and so I can just use that and teach you by distance. The science is a little bit different and so we have a training session that will focus on helping teachers how to do that. Both of these sessions are going to be offered to teachers on all levels and teachers can register for these online sessions once they are made available.”The registration portal will be ready for next week. You can find the details on the Ministry of Education’s website and Facebook page. The ministry says that teachers will need their Belize Education Management Information System number to access these online resources. If you don’t have your BEMIS number, you are asked to call 631-4450.Channel 5
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