The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information is partnering with the School of Education at the University at the West Indies (UWI), Mona, St. Andrew, to award 200 scholarships to educators, and individuals desirous of pursuing training in teacher education.
Addressing a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) Think Tank, at the Agency’s head office in Kingston on Wednesday (June 6), Undergraduate Coordinator and Deputy Dean at the School of Education, Dr. Aisha Spencer, said the scholarships will target two categories of potential candidates.
These, she indicated, are in-service students who will pursue a 66-credit programme, and pre-service students who will have the opportunity to pursue a 90-credit programme.
Dr. Spencer explained that in-service students would have already gained a teaching diploma, but are currently teaching Mathematics, English Language and Geography without the requisite bachelor’s degree.
The pre-service student programme in Mathematics and Science is designed for persons who have only completed high school or are accessing teacher training for the first time. Lecturer and Business Development Coordinator at the School, Dr. Canute Thompson, disclosed that 100 scholarships will be available for each category of candidates. Each scholarship is valued at approximately $300,000 per annum per student.
He indicated that the scholarships are funded by the Government of Jamaica and will cover tuition, housing, books and other critical amenities that are required for the awardees to pursue their studies.
The in-service scholarships are open to teachers in public schools at the secondary level, while persons wishing to pursue the pre-service programme must be Jamaican with at least five Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate subjects at grade one or two, and two Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination subjects between grades one and four. The Ministry of Education is now accepting applications, the deadline for which has been extended to June 30.
Dr. Spencer encourages school principals and heads of departments to support teachers who are seeking to access these programmes, especially the scholarships.
Source: Jamaica Information Service