Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development

Started:    Dec. 1998    Planned Completion: Summer 2005
Revised Completion Date: To be determined.
Funding: GOB/CDB/IDB - Total $426M Bds.
                Caribbean Development Bank loan (US $31.5    M)
                Inter-American Development Bank loan (US $85 M)
                Government of Barbados counterpart funding (US $96.6 M).

Project Objectives:

The primary goal of EduTech is to increase the number of citizens contributing to the sustainable social and economic development of Barbados.

Description of Project:

It is a comprehensive school improvement programme designed to bring about reform of the national curriculum, associated teaching methodologies and assessment procedures in conjunction with required improvements to the physical environment for learning and hosting new technologies. The specific objectives of the programme are to:

Repair and upgrade the existing school plant;
Integrate selected information and communication technologies within the school system;
Provide teacher training to enhance pedagogical skills;
Achieve the desired balance between teacher-centred and child-centred approaches; and
Strengthen the capacity of the Ministry to effectively manage the education system.

The Programme's initiatives are being executed through four (4) inter-related components:

i. Civil Works,
ii. Human Resource Development,
iii. Institutional Strengthening, and
iv. Procurement and Installation of Hardware and Software

Civil Works: The EPIU has responsibility primarily for administering the accounts of the Programme and executing the Civil Works component. This component involves physical refurbishment and upgrading of classrooms and where necessary, other facilities of each schools' plant. Importantly, buildings are prepared with the electrical and cabling infrastructure to support the planned distribution of various educational multi-media resources.

Progress of the Civil Works Component:

As at the end of January 2005, thirty two of one hundred and ten schools or 29% of the overall number to be worked on have been refurbished including full installation of technology cabling. The execution of the Civil Works component has proceeded considerably more slowly than would allow in a 7 year completion of all works to be achieved. In view of the objective of advancing access to necessary technologies in concert with the important curriculum reform taking place, it is recognized that a distinct Programme adjustment will need to be made to allow faster delivery of a manageable level of technology installation, independent of the longer horizon task of repairing and upgrading the aged or inadequate aspects of the physical plant of the islands schools. Such a revised approach is currently under active preparation for approval by the Government, the lending agencies and project stakeholders.

Phase I

Fifteen schools, that is, 9 primary, 4 secondary and 2 private schools were completed under Phase 1 of the project. The primary schools were Cuthbert Moore, Deacons, Westbury, Sharon, Irving Wilson, St. Joseph, St. Mary's, South District and Christ Church Boys' . The secondary schools were Alexandra, Ellerslie, St. James and Combermere. The private schools were St. Gabriel's and Metropolitan

Phase 2 Schools

Ten Phase 2 primary schools have been refurbished. These schools were Mount Tabor, St. Matthew's, St. Lukes-Brighton, Pine, St. Paul's, Grazettes, St. Jude's, St. Bernard's, St. Andrew's and St. Alban's.

Five Secondary schools were undertaken. Those already completed are Louis Lynch, Queen's College, St. Lucy and Alleyne. Final aspects of the works at Princess Margaret Secondary are about to be concluded. Two private schools, Adventist and St. Cyprian's were completed.

Phase 3 Schools

Bay Primary was completed in January 2005. St. Lucy and West Terrace Primary are to be completed by the end of March 2005. The lone Secondary school initiated in this Phase, Coleridge and Parry, is projected to be completed in May 2005. Works at this school were extended to allow expansion of the classroom size of the ground floor of the main classroom block.

Upcoming works:

Continued execution of Civil Works to other Phase III schools is planned for the coming financial year targeting schools where physical repair or restoration is most urgent. The schools proposed include: Secondary: - Foundation, St. Michaels and St. Giles Senior. Primary: The new Carrington and Erdiston amalgamated school.