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More Schools Or More Teachers

More Schools Or More Teachers

Do you think there is a need for More Schools Or More Teachers to help students get better education / teaching?

Teachers Or Schools More

I would say there is a need for more qualified teachers. The problem I see is the Ministry thinking that more school equals "quality" Education. This is what Hazel Manning said recently:

I did not know this was a school building competition. This is exactly what I am talking about. Quality has nothing to do with the amount of schools you build.

More Schools Or More Teachers Caribbean / Tobago & Trinidad

I think that teachers need to be more dedicated to doing their job. Even if though there are more teachers who are qualified, there is no guarantee that they will teach, to help children succeed.
I have to decide where to send my son to school in September, and I am in a "fix". The Government schools in my area say we are not in their catchment area, and I am not sure that I want to send him there anyway because of what I see happening there. On one hand you hear about this focus on early childhood education, where children learn in meaningful contexts and 'play' to learn, but the primary schools want children who can read and write. These schools have First year students with exercise books to write everything. How meaningful is that? what about those children who can't write yet? Will they be deemed 'special'? The teachers need to do what is developmentally appropriate and be guided by current research about how children learn best.
I believe administrators also need to provide proper support for teachers in delivering the curriculum.

Teachers Or Schools More

Suze, I personally do not think is a matter of dedicated teachers (there are many). The thing is most try their best with what the resources they have (which aren't many). In my opinion, there is an urgent need for re-structuring the whole Education System. We cannot be sending a 4 years old to kindergarten/pre-school and expect them to write and do Math! (I have seen it). I am surprised when I do not see parents concerned about this. I have traveled and lived in other countries and is unacceptable.

Even if they are deemed "special", there is not proper resources for children with special needs in the country, they are completely ignored.

Teachers need to be trained in order to do this and that's the job of the Ministry of Education but if the Ministry continues with the dinosaur mentality that a child at age 11 must pass a certain exam to see what school he can goes in Secondary School and still believing that Math and English are the subjects who a child MUST perform or is labeled as "special" then there is not much hope, at least in the current administration.

Teachers Or Schools More

I think we need more qualified teachers, but the ones who put the student's interest first their income.

As a student myself, the amount of schools have nothing to do the level and quality of education i receive.I have attended one of the most prestigious schools in Trinidad and Tobago and yet encountered an impotent teacher( for lack of a better word), which resulted in me dropping one of my subjects and i'm sure there are millions of other students in a similar predicament.

I, also believe the real problem is the system of education itself .It is bias and designed to segregate students( especially the 'slow' ones) . You may find this statement unreasonable but its true. In a classroom, the amount of time it takes to teach a topic is based on the general understanding of the class. If one student does not grasp or understand a topic within that allotted space of time no additional time is taken to assist them. Hence the reason why there are so many students paying for additional lessons, and they claim education is free, here.
However this wouldn't occur if more emphasis would be made on upgrading schools with and the adequate equipments and materials required for teaching, and more efficient teachers, then every child would have the opportunity of receiving a higher quality of education(no matter what school they attend).

More Schools Or More Teachers

There is a growing concern for teachers yet the teachers ability are limited because of all the rules, and material and with all the new equipment the schools are at a loss as to how to get new ones. They had on the TV the other night that there is a paint coming out soon that will be able to turn a ordinary wall into a TV screen. This would make it able to have a teacher teach more than one class and have a less qualified room attendant or helper look after the kids and bring questions and keep order in the room.

More Schools Or Teachers

What do you mean by "impotent". I think that we need to find out which came first? The lessons or the "impotence"?
I have also seen situations where parents sign children for lessons at the start of the school term even BEFORE the course has started. These children therefore do not come to class prepared to learn but are distracted and distract others in the bargain.
Again, what do you consider to be an impotent teacher.

More Schools Or Teachers Trinidad & Tobago / Caribbean

Keeping with the Topic I will first say that there needs to be more schools. Classrooms numbering 40-80 are too large and I do not think children can really be encourgaged, helped or taught efficiently no matter how skilled the teacher is, because most pupils learn at different levels / speeds.