OECS Ministers of Education have asked for the establishment of a sub-committee to determine preferred options for the bulk purchasing of essential school text books for the sub-region.

This is one of several conclusions coming out of the  OECS Ministers of Education Meeting  in Basseterre. In this regard the Ministers of Education have requested the OECS Education Reform Unit OERU to circulate terms of reference for a sub-committee to undertake the best option for the text book initiative. The Ministers also solicited the support of the United Nations for the OERU’s task in determining the preferred options for bulk purchasing of text books.

In addressing policy options on school discipline the Ministers requested that the OERU oordinates the formulation of harmonized comprehensive discipline policies consistent with the education legislation in the OECS countries as well as the formulation of best practices that support good school culture.

On the issue of Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) the Ministers instructed the OECS Education Reform Unit to develop a framework for integrating  TVET based competencies into the Secondary School Programme in collaboration with CXC and other appropriate regional agencies.

The 17th meeting of the OECS Ministers of education also heard presentations from the University of the West Indies on Post Secondary Education, the Caribbean Examinations Council CXC on Secondary Education and the Caribbean Community CARICOM Secretariat on TVET. The OECS Ministers of Education expressed gratitude to main donor partner the Canadian International Development Agency CIDA for their significant engagement and contribution to Education Reform in the OECS. They further requested their continued commitment to consolidate gains and build the economic competitiveness of the sub-region. To this end the Ministers of Education mandated the OECS Secretariat to host a meeting with development partners to present a sector wide approach for education and to mobilize the necessary resources for its implementation.

The 17th meeting of the OECS Ministers of Education was held  in St. Kitts and Nevis from 24th – 25th November 2005, under the theme; “Continuing Education Reform  Through Collaboration”.

Contacts:
Johnson Cenac Officer in Charge (OERU)
Kendol Morgan Senior Communications Officer OECS Secretariat This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Raymond O’Keiffe Comm.Officer OECS Secretariat email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it