Robotics programme being expanded to primary school
Minister of Education Sharie deCastro announced on Friday, October 18, that her ministry will expand its robotics programme to primary schools next year.
Speaking in the House of Assembly (HOA), deCastro emphasised the importance of integrating robotics and technology into early education, highlighting their potential to drive careers in engineering, computer science, and artificial intelligence.
“The Ministry has committed to starting even earlier,” deCastro stated. “We recognize the need to spark curiosity and creativity at a young age. I am proud to announce that we will be expanding our robotics programme to primary schools next year.”
DeCastro explained that introducing these concepts to younger students will cultivate innovation and critical thinking skills. “By planting the seeds of innovation early, we are giving students the opportunity to explore, tinker, and develop problem-solving abilities,” she said. “This early exposure will ensure that the next generation of Virgin Islanders will not only use technology but also create it.”
The minister highlighted that while foundational digital literacy has been introduced through the S.T.E.A.M curriculum for Grades 7-9, additional funding from government collaborations and Unite BVI has allowed this to be extended to Grade 10. She also indicated plans to eventually extend robotics education to Grades 11 and 12 over the next two years.
During the official opening of the 2024-2025 school year, deCastro informed the public about a reimagined curriculum that emphasises Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) innovation. This initiative, which begins at the lower secondary level and expands to include robotics and coding in upper secondary, is a response to students’ calls for nurturing curiosity and ingenuity through enhanced digital literacy and innovation.
The Ministry of Education, Youth Affairs and Sports adopted STEAM as its theme in 2022, reaffirming its commitment to equip students for a technologically competitive future.
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First things first , how many robotic engineering specialists do we have on the primary / secondary school staff ? Don’t run before you can walk.
The education system in the BVI has declined significantly since the VIP got in government. Now we have child as education minister whose only strategy to have students playing with robots all day while she and her CEO buddy jet flies around the world together at the expense of the public.
LMAO
The work will get done properly and on time daily / and hopefully they will replace these wannabe superstars who think that own this land and who or whatever on it , THAT WILL SURELY BALANCE THE SCALES – FOR ALL HUMAN BEINGS
Creativity is an essential component in robotic engineering and all other subjects.
It is creativity in all its various forms, that needs to be placed on the educational front burner.
My video “Realising Your Creative Potential” is relevant. https://youtu.be/5K7MM16Kc_E
In addressing the actions of the current Minister of Education, it is essential to highlight the superficial and hollow approach being taken to reform education through the repeated promotion of programs that use flashy, weasel terms like STEAM and robotics without any substantive policy changes to back them. These terms have become the latest buzzwords in educational circles, serving as convenient soundbites for politicians eager to appear progressive. However, these terms are meaningless without the critical policy shifts required to support true educational reform.
The Minister’s reliance on these terms amounts to little more than an exercise in rhetoric. Promoting programs like STEAM and Robotics may sound impressive at first glance, but in the absence of policies designed to improve teacher quality, curriculum standards, resource allocation, and infrastructure, these initiatives are nothing but a façade. It’s a disservice to educators, students, and parents alike who expect real, tangible improvements, not marketing gimmicks.
It is time for the Minister to abandon this empty rhetoric and demonstrate a real commitment to improving education. This country’s students and educators deserve policies that lead to lasting, systemic change—not hollow slogans that sound good in speeches but amount to nothing in the classroom. This lazy approach is what we have come to expect from her! It’s not surprising, but I’m still disappointed.
THANK YOU!
POWERFUL!!!!!
News Update. House of Assembly members to be replaced by robots which is expected to improve good governance in the Virgin Islands from day one !
I hope to see she walks the street just like all those other loser who been in and never do s**t
That is deep hope… Get the linguistics up make it credible with a choice or two and send the kids away to the foreign place of interest let that be a trip they study for years and look forward to based on their language choice. We are doing too many frills and silliness trying to re-invent the wheel.