Teacher Training
Teachers are seen as the major change agents in the education reform process and as a result, teacher training forms the major part of the Human Resource Development component of the Programme. The majority of the training is conducted by the public post-secondary/tertiary institution Erdiston Teachers' Training College, but various consultants also conduct training and workshops as necessary. School Implementation and Leadership Teams (SILTs) from the Programme schools are trained in Teaching Methodologies, Educational Leadership and Technology Mastery, after which they present implementation plans for their respective schools. School or centre-based training is also conducted for all the teachers at the Programme schools in Teaching Methodologies and Technology Mastery.
Technology Mastery training is aimed at equipping teachers with the knowledge and technical skills to understand and effectively utilise the technology. In addition to this general technical training, Microsoft Certified Professional training and other specialised training are provided under the Programme. This advanced technical training is mandatory for those teachers serving as Information Technology Co-ordinators (ITCs) at their respective schools, in order to ensure that they have the requisite skills to successfully manage the integration of technology in their schools.
The Teaching Methodologies training is aimed at helping teachers to successfully employ various teaching methodologies and to effectively integrate technology into their work. In addition, special needs training will be made available to teachers in order to equip them with the skills required to better cater to the special needs students within the school population and to facilitate the effective integration of these students into mainstream schools wherever possible.
Teacher Training Status
The school teams from the schools in Phases 1 to 4 of the programme have already been trained, and some teachers from the Phase 1 and Phase 2 schools have already benefited from Basic Technology Mastery and Teaching Methodologies. Some of those teachers from the Phase 1 schools, serving as ITCs have also participated in overseas study tours in order to observe best practices relating to the integration of technology in schools.
In addition, the Ministry has entered into an agreement with Mount St. Vincent University in Canada, an institution which specialises in Special Needs Education, to offer Bachelor's and Master's programmes to teachers, in collaboration with Erdiston Teachers' Training College. The programmes commenced at Erdiston College in the 2002/03 academic year.
Institutional Strengthening
Training of Personnel
Under the Institutional Strengthening sub-component of the Programme, personnel from the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development , Erdiston Teachers' Training College and the school system receive training relevant to the implementation of the project. Ministry officers also participate in study tours and conferences as necessary.
To date, personnel from the Ministry and Erdiston Teachers' Training College have been trained in a wide range of areas which included educational management, educational policy analysis and planning, curriculum technology integration, teaching and learning standards, creation of learning materials, development of an effective school inspectorate and assessment. Ministry officers have also undergone training in more general, project-related areas such as international procurement; project management, and project monitoring and database design.
Education Evaluation Centre (EEC)
The Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development also contracts the services of the Education Evaluation Centre (EEC) under the Institutional Strengthening sub-component of the Programme. The Centre was established at the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies in July 1999, through an agreement signed between the Government of Barbados and the University of the West Indies.
The Centre is responsible for monitoring and evaluating the Programme throughout its duration. Specifically, the EEC seeks to monitor reform activities in schools, with parents and the general public; technical and pedagogical support; teacher/manager training for information technology and student-centred methods; and perceptions of stakeholders about the Programme. In addition, the EEC seeks to evaluate the intended and unintended effects of the Programme on students (performance and attitudes); teachers (teaching/assessment methods and attitudes); school managers (attitudes and practices); and relevant Ministry of Education personnel. The periodic information received from the Centre is to be utilised in the 'test-and-fix' approach to programme implementation.
The Centre has submitted reports relating to curriculum reform, school readiness and teacher training. Specifically, the Centre has submitted qualitative research in three (3) case study secondary schools and four (4) case study primary schools from Phase 1of the programme as well as an analysis on the Language Arts Curriculum and on the impact of technology in 'Net' and 'non-Net' schools.
Shell Software Review Centre
The Software Review Centre (SRC) was officially opened in May 1999 as part of the Educational Media Resource Centre in the Ministry's Media Resource Department. Since then, teachers and MEHR officers have used the Centre to review and evaluate software and learning technologies. In addition, the SRC has been utilised as a training facility. Ultimately, it is envisaged that the SRC will be the nucleus for the adaptation of existing software and the development of indigenous software.