7th Meeting and 2nd Interamerican CSR & Early Childhood Meeting

October 11- 12 2012

Marie Archer Hitchins

Barita Education Foundation (BEF)

Kingston, Jamaica 1

Demographic Overview

Jamaica is a small island in the Caribbean

Population approximately 3M

Official Language – English

Spoken Language - Jamaican Creole

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Economic Overview

Moved from what was mainly agrarian economy to a service oriented economy

GDP Per Capita – US$5,562 - 2011 (WB)

Unemployment – 14.3% - 2012 (STATIN)

Debt to GDP Ratio – 128.3% - 2010 (PIOJ)

Global Competitive Index 2011-2012 ranked Jamaica at 107 out of 142 countries

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Global Competitiveness

Why are we here & How do we increase our competitiveness?

Have we invested enough in human & social capital?

Is our economic underperformance tied educational underperformance?

What can we do about it?

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Educational Challenges Children underperforming at primary and secondary levels.

Thirty Percent of primary school graduates can illiterate

Fifty Five Percent innumerate

National Council on Education (NCE)2009

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Implications for Development

A service economy requires a labour force that is:

Literate

Numerate

Able to think critically

Able to communicate effectively in English

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Hence the Need for a highly developed ECE programme in

Jamaica

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Overview Early Childhood Sector

2,000 pre-schools & day-care centers

Ninety Percent Enrollment in pre-schools

Churches heavily invested in pre-schools & primary schools

This indicates that parents have bought into the importance of education at the early childhood level.

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Community Schools

99% of the pre-schools and day-care centers are community based and privately operated

Schools must have a Board of Management

The Operators are Members of the community

Operators & teachers inadequately trained

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The Model

Community-based

Privately owned & operated

Low-cost

Delivered by untrained personnel

High coverage nationally

99% enrollment

Community & Parent support

Policy Support

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Is The Model Working & what are the Policy Implications?

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Government’s Commitment

2004 established Early Childhood Commission (ECC). An inter-sectoral body comprising health, education and social welfare services

Responsible for:

1. Developing Policy & Regulations

2. Regulating Programmes & Services

3. Establishing Standards

4. School Inspections

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The Early Childhood Commission

Establishment of a comprehensive legal, regulatory and policy framework:

Early Childhood Act and Regulations, 2005

National Plan of Action for ECD

National Strategic Plan for ECD

National Parenting Policy

National Parenting Support Commission

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ECE as a Social Contract

The Early Childhood Programme in Jamaica is a tripartite arrangement between the:

Community

Government

Private sector .

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Barita Education Foundation

Managed by a private sector company

Engaged in ECE

Critical Player

A model for CSR in Early Childhood Education

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BEF Board & Students with Former Minister of Education/Prime Minister

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Barita Education Foundation: Vision

Students acquire strong foundational skills in Literacy and Numeracy

Students transition successfully to Primary School

Teachers equipped with skills in Numeracy and Literacy instruction for effective teaching

Parents equipped to support their children

Optimum educational outcomes for Partner Schools

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The Friends & Barita Investments

• Five-year community based literacy project managed by three businesswomen

• Barita Investments Ltd., the oldest stock brokerage firm in Jamaica, principal sponsor

• Programme assumed by Barita Investments Ltd.

• Foundation established in 2004

• Focus on training, skills transfer & instruction

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Barita Education Foundation: Board of Directors

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The Programme The BEF Programme is a Two-year intervention

which focuses on:

Literacy

Numeracy

Parenting support

Using an integrated Agenda that incorporates

Teachers & Parents

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Barita Education Foundation Enhancement Programme

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Literacy

Enhance the knowledge and instructional skills of Pre- School teachers in:

Letter knowledge

Word Recognition

Phonics

Comprehension

Penmanship and Writing

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Building Fluent Readers

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Numeracy

The B.E.F. Teachers lead the guided learning sessions with demonstrations that connect knowledge and application.

Classification

Seriation

Number sense

Measurement

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Life-long Problem Solving Skills

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Parenting Support

Social workers arrange discussions and activities to:

Promote parenting awareness

Improve parenting skills

Encourage participation in school’s activities

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The BEF Team

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School Selection

Need-based

Process of Evaluation

Weakest schools selected

Most vulnerable schools selected

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Evidence-based Implementation

Every child is assessed. A programme of instruction is developed in order to:

Improve the level of learning for each child.

Train the classroom teacher in the most current approaches & strategies in planning, instruction & class management with special emphasis on reading and arithmetic.

Each school is allocated one trained teacher who acts as a Mentor Teacher.

The Mentor Teachers are supervised by the Programme Coordinator.

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Outcomes

Students engaged in the learning process Students learning at the pace and at the level required for their age group Teachers empowered with new knowledge & technologies Parents encouraged by the process Community benefits

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Results

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Best Practices

Assessment

Training

Active Engagement and Supervision by the Board of BEF

Signed contracts of agreement between the school and BEF.

Consultation with Parents

Parents advised of the programme’s implementations

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Challenges

• Inability of the host teacher to carry on the programme and transfer knowledge after BEF exit.

• Modified the programme to address these needs.

• Included a monitoring mechanism.

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Corporate Social Responsibility

1. National Engagement

2. Private Sector awareness

3. Private Sector commitment

Financial Support

Technical Expertise

Management Support

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Corporate Social Responsibility

In Jamaica we have now come to the point in our development where companies

are beginning to understand that CSR is not charity, but rather an investment in their communities which over the long

term will redound to them.

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CSR in Early Childhood Development the Cornerstone of economic development.

Let’s Make A Difference !!!!!!!!!

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