Premier promises to make teachers a priority
In an approach that will likely see his government paying closer attention to the welfare of teachers, Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley has promised to make teachers a priority in the territory.
“So, yes. I have gone from Ministry of Education but in my new role as Premier and Minister of Finance, I will continue to seek ways that I can support you in the education system by making you a priority in the budgeting process,” Premier Wheatley told teachers during a Professional Development Day address yesterday, August 29.
The Premier said he will also seek to ensure that teachers are made a priority by ensuring they have the finances necessary to push to completion some of the projects that his government is working on, and ensuring they have the finances necessary for their programmes.
A former educator himself, Dr Wheatley told teachers that he will also be championing their cause in the salary review process that is expected to take place within the public service.
According to Dr Wheatley, he will also be helping to encourage the development of policies and supporting the Education Minister, Sharie de Castro, in bringing forth policies to help improve the education system and also in other ways through which he can support from his present position.
The Premier expressed that after leaving the Education Ministry, he handed over the baton to someone he feels is committed and dedicated to education as part of her life‘s work. He further noted that it is his job to ensure that de Castro is successful.
The Premier earlier stated that he never had an opportunity, while serving as Education Minister, to say thank you to teachers for their toil and labour in the education system and to express his appreciation.
Dr Wheatley served as Education Minister up until May of this year, when he was selected as the new leader of the coalition National Unity Government and Premier of the territory.
“Thank you for all of your sacrifice, thank you for all of those long nights in which you have written lesson plans and were grading assessments. Thank you for all you do,” Dr Wheatley said.
The Premier noted that teachers deserve to be commended for all the hard work they have put in and for all they have invested into the territory’s children and invested into the BVI’s future.
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He couldn’t do it when he was the education minister. Do we expect any better now. He was the worse education minister ever.
“Promise”, they sure love to use that word! Sadly, there is rarely ever any conviction or substance behind it.
HE IS NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH HIGH EDUACATION THAT REFUSE TO TEACH THE PEOPLE THAT ( LAND SURROUNDED BY WATER IS CALLED AN ISLAND , SO IGNORANCE AND HYPOCRISY WILL ALWAYS BE IN CONTROL OF THEIR MINDS AZ THEY FAIL TO ENLIGHTEN THEIR OWN PEOPLE INSTEAD ,THEY RATHER KEEP IN THE DARK AGES THEM , SO THEY CAN CONTINUE TO MANIPULATE THEM
Pure old talk. Ayo better don’t fall for that
Education should be our number one national priority.
Looking at the blogs they should find someone to teach proper spelling and speaking the english language.
Need to hire teachers that are educated from outside the Territory. Having the uneducated teach the uneducated results in uneducated. It seems that the uneducated running the Territory can’t get that through their thick uneducated minds.
Make the CHILDREN the priority and the teachers will have everything they need! It is not rocket science! Put the money and time into EDUCATION. This does not mean just raising salaries….this means proper maintenance of ALL schools, budgeting correctly for teaching materials for ALL schools, listening to teachers, monitoring teachers, disciplining teachers and making sure the territory has the BEST teachers we can offer to our children. And this should apply to ALL teachers – not just the ones the ministry are friendly with.