Premier inspires: This will be the best school year ever!
“I declare that this school year will be the best school year ever, in the BVI!”
This was the declaration made by Premier Andrew Fahie, as he encouraged students and teachers to deliver their best work throughout this academic year despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Premier was speaking at the annual back-to-school church service, held Sunday, September 20. The ceremony was physically attended by few speakers, performers and government leaders, but virtually, some seven thousand viewers attended to seek God’s guidance for the year ahead.
Referring to the famous Bible verse, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” Premier Fahie urged parents and teachers to focus on the positive things the COVID-19 pandemic has brought.
“The truth of the matter is COVID-19 has taught all of us that we can get more things done in a different way if we only believe. You’re gonna have troubles this term but the troubles are not for you to give up, the troubles are for you to persevere because you can do all things through Christ,” Fahie said.
Put it in God’s Hands
The 2020/2021 school year will be unlike any students and parents around the world have ever seen.
For students, virtual learning will be as prominent as in-person learning while parents will be forced to become assistant teachers while their children learn from home.
In the BVI, parents are no different from those in other countries, facing job losses, economic uncertainty and the added task of assisting with the formal education of their children.
Education Minister Dr Natalio Wheatley highlighted some of the challenges facing many BVI parents as they prepare to send their children back to school.
“We have parents out there, they don’t have somebody to watch their children, some lost their jobs, they don’t have money to buy textbooks, worried about buying school uniforms. The parents, with so much anxiety and so much worry, I’m saying put it in God’s hands,” Dr Wheatley said.
He also urged the educators to look beyond the problems within the education system and put them “in God’s hands”.
“As a Minister, I don’t even pretend to have all the answers. I know sometimes it seems like an impossible task. All the problems we have with space in the schools, we don’t have enough devices, we don’t have the internet access. We just have to put those things in God’s hands and He will make a way.”
He continued: “I’ll say to the principals as well — all of the challenges we have in the school system, all the challenges we have among our teachers and students; maybe there’s some maintenance that needs to be done in schools … we just have to put it in God’s hands.”
On September 18, the government approved the reopening of all private schools, daycare centres, pre-schools and colleges, once they’ve been inspected by the Social Distance Monitoring Task Force and approved by the Ministry of Education.
Some public school students, namely technical education students, students with special needs, marginalised students, and adult education students have also been approved to attend in-person classes.
The Chief Education Officer will decide on the students that fall into these categories.
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Best school year ever! Hmmmm. You made big announcement that there will be no school for the rest of the year. Some pressure came down and within a week of saying online teaching for the year, you come back and say that you’re opening school. Now you put extra pressure on parents to rush to find uniforms and school supplies which many of them have no
money to buy because you lock down the country and they can’t work. Don’t blame it on the reduction in cases. People aren’t that stupid. You don’t have a plan that is why you keeping blowing in the wind like paper.
Where is the furniture for ESHS? After two years still no furniture for the school but Claude got his big contract, Premier had body guards paid for, cronies get their properties rented, 17k per day for badges to sit on the water, new vehicles for government ministers and no furniture for students to sit on at the high school.
This man must always be the center of attention. It made no sense that Sowande show up yesterday. Andrew is the minister for everything in government. The rest of them are just window dressing.
Andrew stfu
I would shake you hand if I could….
Playing government
This man is living in dreamland
He is not fit to govern this island
He saying one thing and a day or two after he changes his plans
What he need to do opus the blasted Island so ppl can work where will we get money to buy school stuff and bus fee to and from school.
Fahie need to use his common sense if he get any
It’s way to long now the tourism industry is close it’s about time it open
Oh and stop using COVID-19 as an excuse
Look around you and see how many islands open up for tourism and you not hearing ppl dying like before
You always calling god name but seems like you don’t trust god if that’s the case stop calling god name in vain
I am so glad I don’t have any school age children. I would be a nervous wreak if my child had to go and sit in a classroom with the virus going around. Not because cases have dropped means all is ok.
Best school year ever and you all run out of the digital text books to give the kids. I went to the school only to be told that you all are out. What is my child to do now? This never happened when Hon. Walwyn was there. Never.
RUN OUT IS JOKE! Half the chargers for what given out not even working!! They making easy money off the parents for these digital text books that the student not even using! Why with the pandemic they didn’t give them out free with a strict policy if damage pay full 199.99. Money Making Government!
THIS MAN IS GOING TOO FAR NOW BECAUSE HE TAKES ALL OF US FOR A SET OF JACK A**SES
Instead of putting down our Premier, why don’t you NDP haters go put a sock in it?
@SUE TO INGRID, NO ONE IS PUTTING DOWN YOUR PRECIOUS PREMIER. YOU KNOW THE FAMOUS SAYING ABOUT WHEN YOU ASSUME SOMETHING.? I DO NOT LIKE POLITICS NOR DO I SUPPORT ANY POLITICAL TEAM.
It’s amazing to me how this premier gets a break for things that NDP would have been crucified for. Just goes to show that a government doesn’t have to be running the country properly, his cronies just need to be fed so their mouths will be too full to oppose the madness.
It’ shows me that it’s not about love for country. It’s all about politics like everything else in this country. During the last government the people creating most of the trouble was VIp operatives and they had their own newspaper to push out the negative and feed us with it. Now the newspaper owner get rewarded so it’s only pro government stories are being written now. Stay woke people. Stay woke! If a school was out of toilet paper it was news on that site. Now the school out of furniture and the digital text books and not a word!
So we coming straight out of covid into the best school year ever… This man duz remind me of Donald Trump badd… #TellThemWhatTheyWantToHear