ROSEAU, Dominica – Dominica's government has announced plans to stage a national symposium on education in June as it seeks to implement reforms to the country’s education system that Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has described as outdated and harmful to students’ development.
Skerrit said that the national symposium next month is intended to guide urgent changes, which he hoped could take effect as early as the upcoming school year in September.
Prime Minister Skerrit criticized the current structure in which primary school students are taught as many as 13 subjects, calling it “ridiculous” while proposing a streamlined curriculum focused on English, Mathematics, Social Studies, History, and Social Science, in addition to practical life skills such as agriculture, carpentry, art, and civics.
“We’re not building a culture of collaboration. We’re not building a culture of cooperation. We’re not building students with analytical skills and critical thinking and comprehension,” Skerrit told reporters, emphasizing the need to recognize different learning styles, talents, and intelligences.
Prime Minister Skerrit said extracurricular activities such as music and sports should create settings for children to work and play collaboratively.
“I don’t think another school year should come, where we place children in depressing situations. And if we lose that opportunity, we are going to lose a generation,” he said, adding that the education system should be tailored to today’s realities, including technological advancement and artificial intelligence.
