Reception classes filled up as new school year starts

(CNS): Over 200 local children are now attending the restarted free reception classes at Sir John A Cumber Primary, Bodden Town Primary and Savannah Primary Schools. The roll out of the pre-school class is part of the government’s phased plan to reintroduce the free service to all Caymanian children, officials said. Officials said this will enable staff to identify any problems or learning difficulties with young children before they are part of the official system. The completion of new classroom blocks at each of the schools has provided the additional space to make the classes possible.

Julie Madgwick head of the education ministry’s early childhood care and education (ECCE) unit said each reception class is staffed with a trained Early Years Teacher and an assistant, where numbers rise over 12 students. 

All of the assistants hired for the new Reception classes are Caymanian, most of whom are participating in the Ministry’s new Post Graduate Certificate in Education this year, seeking to become qualified teachers.The reception teachers are using the new Cayman Islands Early Years Curriculum Framework to plan activities for children, to support them as they develop the knowledge and skills to become life-long learners.
“The response to reception has been fantastic,” said Reneé Barnes, a member of the ECCE Unit. “Parents are grateful, the children are excited, and schools are delighted that they have an opportunity to start working with the children before they start their formal education.”

Barnes explained that, as a part of the Government service, children in reception classes will benefit from support from the ECCE Unit, services and resources within the education system, as well as a commitment to identifying and remediating barriers to children’s learning at the very earliest stages.

“There is a commitment for everyone to work together to tackle problems before challenges and failure become the norm. Our Minister’s vision is for every child to succeed. Quality early childhood care and education can help to make this a reality,” she added.

Early year’s education has been a focus for the current education minister, Rolston Anglin

“I believe the work my ministry is undertaking in the early years will prove to be one of the most important investments our country has ever made,” he said in a release Friday. “I also believe incredible gains have been made since the ECCE Unit was launched in May 2011: the Reception programme, our new Early Years curriculum framework, our innovative training programmes for practitioners, partnership with private pre-schools to raise standards, a rigorous programme of oversight and support from our new  ECCE Unit, and a new inspection programme,” he added.

The minister said he believed that in time more children would find success, as they move through the school system, “irrespective of background, income, or special education needs,” he said.