Child Friendly Schools NEWSLETTER INSIDE - … – Milton Lynch Primary School – held its family week during the month of May. One major activity was the “bring your dads to school

Child Friendly Schools NEWSLETTER, VOL. 6. Issue 6, 2012

INSIDEWelcome message ...............PG1

Message from UNICEF .......PG 2

In Focus ............................PG 3-6– Getting parents involved

through the Family Week at schools in Barbados .................. PG 3

– Milton Lynch Primary School- Boys need dads too!........................ PG 3

– Involving parents at Freemanville Primary ..................... PG 5

– Involving parents through the Check-in Check out Programme at Cobbs Cross Primary School ..................... PG 6

UP CLOSE .........................PG 7-9– Theresa Small - from lashes

to positive discipline ....................... PG 7

– Single...Working... but yet being involved in his son’s school life ..................PG 8-9

Principals’ Corner .............PG 10

Teachers’ Corner ........ PG 11-15– Inexpensive ways to

reward children for their on-target behaviours ....................PG 11

– Managing your students’ behaviour - moving beyond the colour wheel ............................PG 13

– Teacher’s - are your classrooms learning ready? ........PG 15

CFS News .................... PG 16-22

Welcome to the 6th issue of In Touch. This magazine highlights good practices at schools implementing

the Child Friendly School (CFS) framework in the Eastern Caribbean Area.

In the Eastern Caribbean the implementation of CFS framework first started in 2007 with the main focus on positive behavioural management. This was primarily done in an attempt to reduce the use of corporal punishment by teachers and to address issues of interpersonal violence among children, which were becoming a concern for regional governments.

Recognising that a holistic approach must be taken to address negative behaviours of students, (and by extension reducing the use of corporal punishment by teachers), the CFS model in the Eastern Caribbean has been expanded to include the following:

• Positive behavioural management techniques • Strengthening the life skills-based

Health and Family Life Education to ensure that all students have the necessary skills to make informed choices about issues which confront them

• Student centered classrooms where teaching strategies are implemented to

meet the needs and interest of all students• Student participation in school governance

and in other areas of the school• Parental and community involvement

in school decision making• Policies for the protection of children such

as anti-bullying programmes, child abuse prevention and management policies etc.

• Sports for development

The past issues of In Touch have focused primarily on efforts to implement positive

behavioural management in schools and on students’ participation in school governance

Recognising that parental involvement in schools is important to the positive moulding of children, and further that this is an area that most schools have been struggling with; this issue of In Touch highlights some good practices being implemented at schools to get parents more meaningfully involved.

Although we focus primarily on parental involvement, good practices in the other areas of CFS framework are also highlighted in this issue. We trust you will find this issue useful and please do send us your comments and stories at [email protected].

Welcome

The past issues of In Touch have focused primarily on efforts to implement positive

behavioural management in schools and on students’ participation in school governance

MESSAGES FROM UNICEF

by Lisa McClean-Trotman, PhD(Communication for Development Specialist, UNICEF)

1 CFS NEWSLETTER, VOL. 6, 2012

Parental Involvement in Child Friendly Schools

The Child Friendly School Framework recognizes the important roles of parents

in their children’s education and encourages schools to make this a priority in helping to meet the psycho-social needs of students. In today’s environment it is clear – if it was not before – that strong parent-school collaboration is not an option but a must if boys and girls are to be supported to reach their full potential. Globally, as in the Caribbean, it has been the women who have sought to make that link with schools. However in the current environment where boys’ underachievement is of concern in the region, the issue of greater parental involvement – especially male involve-ment – is even more critical.

The partnership between parents and schools must be a strong, seamless one to better develop and reinforce the critical values and attitudes for children’s positive development. Mothers, fathers and other caregivers must be seen and respected as full partners in the education process and must be consulted in deci-sions that affect their children.

This requires moving beyond the norm of just having parents involved in fundraising activities through Parents Teachers’

Associations (PTAs). Schools can play an important role in helping parents to understand the educational process and their role in supporting their children’s achievement. This includes the promotion of parenting skills as well as ensuring regular, open, meaningful two-way communica-tion between home and school.

In addition parents, and other caregivers must be welcomed in the school, and their support sought. Indeed this is one way to tap into and access the community resources that can be used to strengthen schools and student learning

The very creative approaches being used by schools involved in

implementing the CFS framework indicate that they are up to the challenge. The family open days, father-son activities,

parent reading and literacy weeks are all steps in the right direction.

As we continue to move forward, greater parental involvement in children’s education is definitely an area for more focused intervention and innovative engagement as we strive to facilitate the positive growth and development of Caribbean girls and boys.

PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT

-Important for Children’s Success at Schools.

Global research underscores the central role of parents in children’s educational achievement. Frequently, studies point to a direct positive relationship between children’s performance and the level of parental effort in supporting them.

Irrespective of other factors like socio-economic or ethnic background, children whose parents put more effort into their education do better at school. All things being equal, those students are generally more motivated, more consistently complete homework, have higher grades, have better attendance records and are more self-confident.

This therefore certainly underscores how important it is for schools to consciously and deliberately identify and adopt strategies that would promote greater parental involvement in children’s education and school life in general.

The partnership between parents and schools must be a strong, seamless one to better develop and reinforce the critical values and attitudes for

children’s positive development.

by Elaine King(Adolescent and HIV/AIDS Specialist, UNICEF)

CONTINUED

CFS NEWSLETTER, VOL. 6, 2012 2

Under the direction of the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development in Barbados, several schools that are part of the School Positive Behavioural Management Programme (CFS) were encouraged during the school year to have a family week as a means of reaching out to parents. Following are highlights from activities held at some of the schools that participated.

IN FOCUS

Bring your family to the Christ Church Girls School

Getting parents involved through the Family Week at schools in Barbados

- They came and performed cultural pieces with their children…. - They cooked healthy meals with them … - They learnt how to teach their children to read; - They took time out from their busy work schedule to learn how to manage their finances in the

best interest of their children.

did a fun English lesson with the students which included word search and word scramble; they also used the opportunity to go through their child’s corrections from past tests and helped them with weak academic areas.

Some talked to the students about their careers; others chose to do motivational talks with the class. All of them had fun playing games with the children such as chess, dominoes and card games.

Milton Lynch Primary school – Boys Need Dads Too!

“BRING YOUR DADS TO SCHOOL FOR A DAY.” The only all- boys public primary school in Barbados – Milton Lynch Primary School – held its family week during the month of May. One major activity was the “bring your dads to school for a day.”

For the approximately 100 fathers who showed up, the day was an opportunity for them to play the role of the teacher. Some of them who came

Caption: Parents displayed their culinary skills


Who were they?

They were the mothers, fathers and grandparents of the Christ Church Girls School in Barbados, who came to school

during one week in the month of March to see what was being done in their children’s classrooms and to be part of that school’s,

“BRING YOUR FAMILY TO SCHOOL WEEK.”

According to Principal Ms. Heather Bryan, the week was a success as parents got to learn more about what their children did on a daily basis at the school. Her sentiments were shared wholeheartedly with parents who all thought the initiative was a “very good idea.”

Robert Boyce, parent of a class 3 student, noted he was elated when his daughter told him about the activities. He saw it as an opportunity to do “something with his daughter at school” and took the opportunity to show off their dance skills to the school body during the cultural day which ended the week of activities.

Caption: Parent Renrick Trotman, interacting with the class 2 students at the Milton Lynch Primary School

Caption: A father performs a cultural dance with his daughterCaption: Parents listen attentively to session on how to teach children to love reading

CONTINUED


While most schools have challenges involving parents,

the Principal and staff of the Freemanville Primary in Antigua and Barbuda have developed a strategy for getting parents involved in their school.

DEVELOPMENT OF A PARENT ACTION PLAN

One of the first things that they did was the development of a parental involvement action plan. A key aspect of

the plan involved teachers identifying parents who had flexible schedules and who could share experiences with the children.

PUBLIC RECOGNITION OF PARENTS

Another aspect of the plan is publicly recognising those parents who have been involved in the life of the school. This was done at the school’s annual graduation where parents

were awarded with a small token for their involvement.

RESULTS

The action plan seems to be producing results. According to the Principal, “to date the school have had parents come in and tell stories; some have done spelling with the children; some have come to teach them maths and healthy habits. Parents have also been volunteering to accompany their children on school field trips.”

Other Schools that held family week in Barbados were:– All Saints Primary School,– Erdiston Special Needs School– The People’s Cathedral Primary School

Below are some pictures from the Family week at the People’s Cathedral School

Involving parents at Freemanville Primary, in Antigua & Barbuda

IN FOCUS


TEACHERS’ ROLE

When students arrive each day at school they sign in/Check-In with the principal or the grade five teacher. During the Check- In students are reminded of the school’s CFS expectations.

Throughout the day, based on their efforts the students are scored by the principal or by teacher on a score from 0 to 3, with 3 being the highest. At the end of the day the students Check-Out (are signed out by the teacher).

PARENTS’ ROLE

When the students arrive at home, they “Check-In” with their parent(s). The parents check to see what the scores their child received for the day; they also ensure homework

is done; they check the homework and sign off on it. Each child is required to study for at least half an hour and the parent then gives a score for the student’s performances during the home work and study period.

HOW IT ALL COMES TOGETHER?

Based on the total scores received, the student is eligible to receive a reward for his/her on target behaviours

PROGRAMME HELPS STUDENTS BECOME MORE FOCUSEDThe programme has been working. 11-year-old Odaine Brooks, noted that he “studies more” since the programme started and

he “no longer defaces the school desk” because he wants to get the reward.

10-year-old Threy Williams, stated “I am more focused now. I don’t copy anymore.”

Principal Lashley confirmed the views of the students. She noted that : “The children are working harder to achieve success. We see improvements in the following areas: Homework done more often; Honesty at school; increased participation during class time and more helpfulness.”

She also added that more parents have been checking in to see how the children are doing at school.

How does the Check-In Check-Out programme work?

Cobbs Cross Primary School in Antigua and Barbuda has also implemented strategies to get parents more involved

in their children’s academic life. According to Principal Carol Lashley, the main concern related to children “not doing or completing homework” for which the consequences use to be lashes. As a result, she and her team decided to get the parents involved through a programme called “Check-In Check-Out”

To implement the programme a meeting was first held with the teaching staff and all parents

of the grade five students. At that meeting the homework contracts were discussed and the school sought to receive parental permission to implement the programme.

Involving parents through the Check-In Check-Out programme at Cobbs Cross Primary School in Antigua and Barbuda

Caption: Grade 5 students who are involved in the Check-In Check-Out Programme

CONTINUED


CloseUP

Theresa Small, a parent at the Erdiston Special Needs School in

Barbados, would be one of the first to admit that having a positive relationship with her child’s school has tremendously improved the quality of her family’s life.

Ms. Small candidly admitted that she used to rely on corporal punishment to discipline her daughter Thalisa who was constantly being reprimanded for hitting her classmates.

“I was lashing my daughter a lot and I would always see her lashing her dolls the same way.”

However, a consultation with the school’s principal, Ms. Kay Sargeant turned things around for her and her daughter.

This edition of Up Close we focus on two parents who are taking time to be involved in their child’s school life in different ways.

Theresa Small – from lashes to positive discipline

During that consultation Ms. Sargeant shared the positive discipline strategies which the school is using as

Caption: Mrs. Small and her daughter Thalisa going through her home behaviour charts

part of the School’s Positive Behavioural Management practices and encouraged Mrs. Small to use a behaviour chart with her daughter.

Realizing that what the principal had recommended

was a better way, Mrs. Small began to use a behaviour chart in collaboration with her child’s teacher and other family members. Her daughter received an asterix on the chart for inappropriate behaviour and was rewarded

POSITIVE DISCIPLINE: A Better Way


CONTINUED

Single… working … but yet being involved in his son’s school life.

Caption: Mr. Trotman helping his son Renaldo with school work during the family week

with a heart for appropriate behaviour. A favourite toy, book or activity was removed as a consequence for inappropriate behaviour.

Mrs. Small reported that the behaviour chart has worked

extremely well and she has recommended the approach to other parents, especially those of children with special needs.

“From that day I started the chart there have been no problems.”

She laughed as she noted that the approach has been so effective that Thalisa now urges her to remove her older brother’s privileges when he misbehaves.

Although a single father, Renrick Trotman makes time to be involved

in his son’s school life. During the family week held at the Milton Boys School, Mr. Trotman – a bus driver - rearranged his schedule so that he could attend all of the events during the week. Mr. Trotman took time to have an interview with the In Touch magazine.

CONTINUED on page 9

In Touch: Unlike other parents, you took the time to attend more than one event during the family week at the Milton Lynch Primary School. Why did you see it important to do this?

Mr. Trotman: I was a former student of the school when it was called Water Street Boys School. I was pleased to hear about the program and to see how the school has developed. It is only me and him, I am both mom and dad to him so I felt the need to rearrange my schedule so that I can participate.

In Touch: But why?

Mr. Trotman: Well a lot of boys look up to their fathers and if they can see the fathers involved, it makes them feel really good. I knew it would make him feel really good to see me come to the school so I really had to rearrange my schedule so that I could be there.


CONTINUED from page 8

In Touch: Was this the first time that you rearranged your schedule for your son?

Mr. Trotman: No. I have always put him first. I used to be a soldier and it required me travelling a lot and being away from him, so I decided to look for another job which would allow me to be with him more often. That was how I became a bus driver in 2006. I wanted to see my son grow and be there for him at all times.

In Touch: So tell us about family week, what were some of the activities you took part in?

Mr. Trotman: Well on Tuesday I went to the class and I told them about my work and I asked them about their careers. That day I also participated in the father and son football match; I went back on Wednesday. On Thursday I sat in the class and observed a lesson. On Friday was games day so we played draft, dominoes, word scrabble, which my son and I won. I went to work and after work was completed I went back to the movie night.

In Touch: How did your son feel seeing you?

Mr. Trotman: He wanted me to attend every event at the school. He was so happy for me to be around him all the time. When he saw me he felt like he had won a million dollars.

In Touch: Any advice you would give to other fathers?

Mr. Trotman: I would tell them to get involved. When you have anything at the school, the fathers never attend; it is always the mothers. But if they [the father] can spend more time with their sons; do the right thing before them Barbados will be a better place. A father has a role to play in helping sons to define themselves. They have to realise they are stepping stones for their children.

In Touch: Thank you and we wish you all the very best.

CloseUP


CONTINUED

Q. What does the Research say about parental Involvement?

Ans. Research has shown that when parents are involved:

• Students achieve more regardless of socio-economic status or parent’s educational level.

• Parents feel more empowered• Students have more positive attitudes• Academic performance improves• The school climate improves• Staff morale improves

Q. What can I do as a Principal to get more parents involved in the school?

Ans. Develop a school-wide parental involvement plan. Your plan should be an integral part of your overall school policy. Parental Involvement should be part of the ethos of the school

Q. What steps are involved in developing a Parental Involvement Action Plan?

Ans. The steps involved are as follows:

1. Conducting a needs assessment: identify what areas are needed for parental involvement. This should be done in consultation with all staff and ancillary workers and should move beyond fundraising or asking parents for donations

2. Conduct a mapping of your parents. This can be done by individual class teachers and then consolidated. The mapping should try to ascertain information such as their hobbies, interests, skills, time, availability,

3. From the mapping define specific areas for parents to be involved; recognizing that you will not get 100% of the parents and that not all parents can be involved in the same areas. Involvement can be around the following areas:

• Volunteering• learning (whether at home or at school)

PRINCIPALS’ CORNER

Questions Principals Ask About Parental Involvement• Decision making (PTA, parent

Councils, Class Representative)• Parenting ( school involve parents in training that

revolve around their children e.g. Developing effective study habits)

4. Gain parental buy-in by through communication and sensitization of parents and by making sure your school environment is parent friendly

5. Systematically monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of your activities

Q. What can I do to make my school more parent-friendly?

Ans. Here are a few suggestions:

— Have consultation with parents on what they would like to see improved/ and how they can be improved

— Have Parent Representative on CFS team with reporting responsibilities to PTA or parent body

— Implement Suggestion boxes, Feedback forms, School evaluation forms

— Follow through on parents’ suggestions – share suggestions with your staff

— Have Regular communication ( weekly update; From the desk of the principal ; working emails) with parents about activities, their cancellations, new projects, students’ achievements and concerns

— Have concrete activities which show you are deliberately trying to get parents involved in a positive way. For example, family week, father and son projects or activities are very useful in this regard

— Training your staff including ancillary staff on interpersonal communication to enhance how they relate to parents

— Welcome parents with your smiles, greetings and with physical welcome signs which can be developed by your students

“I want them to get involved in the community of school, attend meetings; know the school culture; critique staff members if needed; monitor what is going on with their children and with other students at school.” Primary School Principal on Parental Involvement


Teachers’ CORNER

One of the aspects of the CFS model in the Eastern Caribbean is positive

behavioural management, and many teachers often struggle to come up with ideas of how to reward children for on their target behaviours without incurring too much expense. Some have developed class shops which they find have not been sustainable as they continuously need funds to purchase items for the “shops.”

Here are some examples of what some teachers have been doing to reward students for their on target behaviours without incurring too much expense

Inexpensive ways to reward children for their on-target behaviours.

Personalised certificates, which can easily be done on your computer, are also being given as rewards to students

Recognising children in some public place at the school. This is being done at the James Beaupierre Primary School In Dominica

All students who stayed on green on the behaviour chart took part in this CFS cake at Freetown Primary School in Antigua the end of the month


CONTINUED

Extra playtime is always a big hit with students. This is one of the rewards at Cedar Grove Primary School in Antigua & Barbuda

As a reward for their on-target behaviours during the month, these little ones at Cobbs Cross Primary, were allowed to dress up for a day while their peers had to wear their school uniforms

In addition to the above, other reward ideas being explored by teachers include:

• A movie afternoon at the end of the month• A field trip • A games afternoon• Electronic day or afternoon – children who

have been on target for the month are allowed to bring their electronic games to schools

The key point to remember is to include students in determining what kind of rewards systems should be in place to reward them for their on-target behaviours.

Motivational stickers are also being used to encourage children to maintain their on target behaviours at many schools in Dominica


Managing your students’ behaviour - Moving Beyond the behaviour colour wheel

When UNICEF began supporting the implementation of the

CFS framework in schools, the behaviour colour wheel was one of the positive disciplinary techniques that was implemented by teachers to replace the use of corporal punishment.

However for some students especially the pre-teens - the Behaviour Colour wheel is sometimes seen as too “babyish.”

In light of this several schools in Antigua and Barbuda have devised other creative behavioural charts based on the interest of the students. We share some of the charts that have been developed at the Cedar Grove Primary School.

Racing to good behaviour – this chart is a sports track and is based on the students ‘ interest of track and field

Set sail for good behaviours – Antigua is surrounded by ocean and this chart is based on children’s love for swimming. Based on the infractions that they commit in class, children’s names can be placed in different types of water (calm water, rough seas, very turbulent waters) and they know the corresponding consequences and rewards.

Shooting for goals – This is a football behaviour chart and is especially of interest to the boys. The “players” [students] can be benched, given a yellow card, red card based on the infraction they commit in class. They are also rewarded for their on target behaviours “on the field” [remaining on the colour green].

Teachers’ CORNER


CONTINUED

Now Serving up good behaviour chart. This chart is used with the younger children Based on their behaviours in class , they can be placed in a cup which states sweet behaviour; sour behaviour, bitter behaviour. Each cup has its consequences or its rewards.

Shooting for goal – This a basketball behaviour chart and is being used in a class where the majority of the students are on the basketball team. The “players” [students] can be benched, given a yellow card, red card based on the infraction they commit in class. For good behaviour they are given green cards and are rewarded accordingly.

The mailman behaviour chart. With this chart the mailman delivers mail based on the student’s behaviour. Again this chart is suitable for the younger children.


LEARNING READY CLASSROOMS:

– ARE STUDENT CENTRED• Is your classroom neat and bright?• Do you display your students’ work?• Are lessons engaging and relevant?• Are all students provided with opportunities to experience success?• Is differentiated instruction practiced to meet the varied needs and abilities of students?• Do you vary your seating arrangement to accommodate different learning needs and activities?• Are appropriate learning materials readily accessible for students’ use?• Are students provided with many opportunities to respond to questions during instruction?

Teachers - are your classrooms Student-friendly?

Here is a quick checklist to find out.

CONTINUED

– TEACHERS FOSTER GOOD RELATIONS• Do you take time to get to know your students’ interests and personalities?• Do you model appropriate and expected behaviour?• Do you target the inappropriate behaviour, rather than the child?• Are meaningful connections developed with parents through regular communication?• Do you use respectful humour in the classroom?• Are conflict resolution and other life skills taught?

– TEACHERS ESTABLISH POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR• Are your students involved in creating their classroom expectations?• Are expected student behaviours and classroom routines taught directly?• Are classroom expectations displayed?• Are encouraging affirmations displayed?• Are consequences for misbehaviour clear and consistently applied?• Is there a behaviour chart to help students monitor their behaviour?• Do you routinely acknowledge students’ positive behaviour?• Is there a “thinking spot” for students to cool off or reflect on their behaviour?

Teachers’ CORNER


C.F.S News

More than 40 persons from nine different Caribbean countries are now trained

to instruct in all aspects of the CFS framework being modelled in the Eastern Caribbean.

This was as a result of a Training of Trainers workshop held at the University of Southern

Caribbean in Trinidad and Tobago during the week of 15-20 July.

Participants were exposed to how to train school teams on the topics of: HFLE; Parental Involvement; Student Participation; Positive Behavioural Management and Developing Student-centered classrooms.

The workshop sought to model the various skills and behaviours which teachers would be expected to display in a child friendly school environment. The differences in approaches in working with primary and secondary school students as well as boys and girls was also explored

Overall the feedback from the training was positive as most participants remarked that they had learnt new strategies and ideas that they can share with schools in their countries upon their return.

Country teams trained on all aspects of the CFS framework

Three additional OECS countries to roll out CFS in its primary schools

With the commencement of the new school term 2012/13, three additional

countries have introduced the CFS Framework in its schools. These countries are: St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. This will bring the number to five of the nine OECS countries whose Ministries of Education have introduced CFS.

Anguilla which is an associate member of the OECS has piloted CFS Framework in some of its schools. Similarly Tobago will also be introducing CFS in its schools. As a lead up to the above, representatives from these countries participated in a week-long workshop in Dominica earlier this year where they had the opportunity to do a study tour of schools in Dominica that are implementing aspects of the CFS framework. They also got the opportunity to network with educators and personnel from the Ministry of Education in Barbados and Dominica which have experience in CFS.

It is important to note that the OECS Ministers of Education endorse the roll-out of CFS in all schools in the Sub-region at a meeting held in March 2012.

More than 40 persons from nine different Caribbean countries are now trained to support implementation of the CFS framework

St. Kitts & Nevis

St. Lucia

St. Vincent


of the school. “Students often got on the wrong bus and then when they realised the bus driver had to stop and let them off or had to turn back.”

In addition, there was also the risk of injury for students catching the bus which caused teachers grave concern.

“As soon as the bus arrived students would rush to get on and some of the little ones may get hurt by the big ones [students]” Rebekkah noted.

As a result when the school began establishing its school-wide behaviour plan as part of CFS framework the behaviour for boarding and travelling on the bus was one of the key areas that they had to address.

The Intervention One of the first things that was done was to draw 4 lines clearly in the school yard labelled with each community’s name.

Five Islands Primary School located is located in Antigua and Barbuda. For this

school with a roll of 425 students, only 14 of them are from the neighbouring community and hence the majority of them have to take different buses to come to go to and from school.

Boarding the bus has posed some challenges for teachers which have resulted in the use of corporal punishment.

“Nobody knew which bus to get on”, remarked 10 year old Rebekkah George, a student

Five Island Primary - Getting students to behave well on the bus

Caption: Rodlyn (centre) Rebekkah (left) and their friend – three of the students who had concerns taking the bus before the intervention was implemented

C.F.S News

Students were taught the expected behaviours for bus, as teachers used one of their morning assemblies to role play the negative behaviours and the correct way to behave when the bus arrives. Their efforts are paying off. There is no longer any rushing or pushing and the problem of children getting on the wrong bus has been reduced.

“It’s much safer now, said 10 year old Rodolyn Knight. There is no longer the mad rush to bus, as children are lining up and waiting their turn to get on the bus.”

His sentiments were echoed by 6th grade teacher Bridget Bascombe – who is also a member of the CFS team. According to her, “the students are now more organised when catching the bus and there are hardly any incidences of children catching the wrong bus. The older ones are now looking out for the younger ones and it is much safer now” she added.

Caption: lines are now drawn in the school yard representing each community &students can now safely catch the bus


Sports can be a powerful tool to not only teach life-skills such as

discipline and team work but also to teach academics.

Recognising this, The Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development in Barbados, and UNICEF have teamed up with the Brewster Trust and Arsenal football club to use the game of football to help teach developmental skills to students and also to help those who maybe struggling academically.

The programme is being done at primary and secondary schools that are implementing the School’s Positive Behavioural Management Programme (formerly known as CFS) in Barbados.

One group of students that have been benefiting from the programme is the students of class 2 P at the Milton Lynch Boys School- in Barbados

Most of the students in this class struggle academically but through the programme they have been using the game of football to learn concepts and to enhance their analytical skills.

Once a week the “gappers”, who are part of the Arsenal in the Community programme, take an English lesson and use the 45 minute class period to teach concepts and vocabulary through the use of football.

TEACHING LIFE SKILLS THROUGH SPORTS – ARSENAL IN THE BARBADIAN SCHOOL COMMUNITY

Caption: Gappers from the Arsenal in the Community programme conducting and English lesson with the class at the Milton Lynch Boys’ School

Caption: teaching students the rudiments of football after their class lesson

After the teaching, the “gappers” then take the students on the playing field where they learn the rudiments of the football game.

According to teacher Stacie McClean, she has seen an improvement in the students’ social skills since they began the programme in January.

“ The class has become closer,” noted McCLean. Before there

was segregation with some students not wanting to play with others, but the group work in class and playing the football as a team has been teaching them how to work together and become better friends.

One of the things I have noticed since being in the programme is that the students’ listening skills have been improving,” she added.

CONTINUED


I have learnt self-control from playing football. Normally I get angry when I can’t get something done .They [the coaches] have taught us how to control that anger. Klynisha Connolly 12 years old

We have learnt discipline from the programme. Sometimes if people are talking to us and we don’t like what they say we tell them off. Now if the coaches are talking to us, we don’t tell them off; we just listen. Gabrielle Leonce, 11 years old

This is so much fun. I learnt how to dribble, tackle, kick straight and how to control a head butt. Kaysaha Jones 11 years old

When the Christ Church Foundation School became part of the

Arsenal in the Community programme, the football programme was mainly geared towards the boys. However the girls, after seeing how much fun their fellow male classmates were having decided to join in and since then there has been no turning back. Here is what some of the girls had to say about what they have learnt from the programme.

Girls Rule football at Christ Church Foundation School

C.F.S News


Villa Primary is located in one of the less affluent communities in Antigua.

Students often come to school late; without breakfast and are unable to concentrate, often leading to misbehaviour or sleeping during class period

In light of this, the school, as part of its CFS interventions, sought to identify these students and understand their specific challenges. The result was the implementation of the school’s breakfast programme.

The breakfast programme gives students the opportunity to have a hot beverage and a sandwich in the morning so that they will not be hungry in class. While it was designed for those who do not have breakfast in the morning, the Home Economics teacher, and breakfast club leader -Ms. Esther Defour was quick to point out that they do not turn away anyone who come and indicate that they too would like something to eat on mornings. At present about 15-20 students are served on a daily basis. The cost of initiative is carried mainly

Changing students’ behaviour by meeting their basic needs -

Villa Primary School, implements Breakfast Club as one of its CFS interventions

by the teachers but there is some community involvement as local bakery gives two loaves of bread every day.

Results

A Grade 4 Student at the school, is happy that the programme has been implemented. According to him:

“The breakfast club helps me a lot. There were times when daddy might give me money, but he don’t give me

now. Sometimes like this morning, there is nothing at home to eat so I come for breakfast at school.”

Ms. Esther Defour has also seen an improvement in the students’ attendance level since the implementation of the breakfast programme

“I personally think that the children are changing for the better in attitude and behaviour. I can say with confidence that whereas they were very absent and chronically late, this has improved drastically to regular and early attendance.”

Bernadette Jarvis – Principal – Advocate of the Villa School Breakfast Club is proud of the initiative at her school:

“I am proud of the Breakfast Club initiative. I had no second thoughts about the idea of helping our students. I have visited them some mornings and was warmed to see their happy expressions. I am glad and pleased that the program is on-going and making the expected impact.”

“I personally think that the children are changing for the better in attitude and behaviour.”

CONTINUED


Getting young students involved at the People’s Cathedral Primary School

The People’s Cathedral Primary School – the only private primary school involved in SPBM / CFS programme in Barbados has been devising creative

ways to get students involved in school management.

One system that has been developed is a monitor system in its junior school which gives children between the ages of 6 - 8 years an opportunity to be responsible and in charge of class discipline.

Class monitors change weekly and while in the other classes, the teacher might select the monitor, the class 1 has implemented a different process for the selection of its class monitors. For class 1 teacher Mr. Peter Farnum, the idea to change the process of selecting monitors came to him while teaching a maths lesson on charts and graphs.

“When I began teaching the maths lesson on graphs and tallying, I thought it would be good to use the monitor system as a practical way to teach this concept so I introduced the idea of having elections in the class.” Said Mr Farnum.

“I also thought it would be good way to enhance their public speaking skills so I also introduce the aspect where once students have been nominated they have to come before the class and explain why the class should vote for them as the monitor of the week,” He added.

So how does the process work in class 1?

1. First the teacher prepares the ballot papers

2. While the teacher is preparing the ballot paper a student prepares the tally table on the chalkboard

3. The students then nominate a classmate (a boy and a girl) whom they would like to see as their class monitors for the week. The nominee has to accept the nomination and the nomination has to be seconded by another person

4. The nominees are then asked to come before the class and explain why they should be elected as monitor

5. Once the nominations are closed, a student distributes the ballot paper

C.F.S News


6. Students then “elect” by secret ballot 1 girl and 1 boy whom they would like to become monitor for the week.

The students thoroughly enjoyed the election process. Besides honing in on their Maths and public speaking skills, they also learnt election terms such as “what is a spoilt vote” and why “a person can’t nominate” his or herself. According to 8 year old Janae Primo, who was elected during the above process, “elections are fun; I now understand how voting in general works.”

9. Votes are tallied by a student as the results are read

10. The winner is congratulat-ed by his/her opponent

7. They then cast their ballot in the “ballot box”

8. The ballots are opened by a student and votes are verified by the teacher

11. The process ends when the former monitor hands over the badges to the new monitors. The new monitors then thank their classmates for their support.

Caption: Krystel Martindale pins the monitor badge on Janae Primo while Kai Trotman pins monitor badge on Tyrell Gill

CONTINUED

What have the students learnt from the process?


For further information please contact:UNICEF Office for the Eastern Caribbean Area1st Floor, UN HouseMarine Gardens, Christ ChurchBarbados

Tel: +1 246 467 6000Fax: +1 246 436 2812Email: [email protected]: www.unicef.org/barbadosFacebook: www.facebook.com/UNICEFeasterncaribbeanYoutube: www.youtube.com/UNICEFeasterncaribbean

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) © 2012

A magazine of the Ministries of Education of the Eastern Caribbean, produced in collaboration with the UNICEF Office for the Eastern Caribbean Area.

Documents

Child Friendly Schools NEWSLETTER INSIDE - … – Milton Lynch Primary School – held its family week during the month of May. One major activity was the “bring your dads to school