 And welcome to Top Class, a review of all the happenings in the education sector for the first term of the 2021-2022 academic year. I am Daniel Dubois. We are at the St. Joseph's Convent, one of the many schools who continue to face major challenges as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. It's a story of resilience and innovation. So stay with us as we review Tim One. The National Commission for UNESCO announced the winner of its logo competition in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the commission following St. Lucia's membership to the United Nations, Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, UNESCO, shortly after its independence in 1979. Secretary-General of the National Commission for UNESCO, Marcia Simforian, announced the winner of the logo competition and unveiled the winning piece at a small ceremony. Congratulations to Mr. Neil John. Mr. John receives a trophy, which features his logo inscribed there on, as well as a monetary award of a thousand EC dollars. I went to the UNESCO website and I saw a few of their styles. They are the world, they are the globe, the world in the background. So I wanted to incorporate that in the logo as you could see. There's a solution map in the back of the 40 years. So I just wanted to make it unique. The Evaluation and Assessment Unit presented the overall results from the 2021 Common Entrance Examinations, presenting analysis of overall student performance and the performances by institution, as well as subject areas. This year, a total of 2,148 students sat the exams of which 1,058 were male and 1,185 were female. Males are showing outstanding performances in 12 subject areas. For CSEC, Agricultural Science, both double and single awards, they've outperformed the females in geography, in human and social biology, in industrial technology, all three subjects, woods, electrical and the mechanical, information technology, integrated science, physical education and sport, technical drawing and visual arts. Some 100 St. Lucian teachers benefited from training focused on best practices, current research and practical tools that create inclusive environments for neurodiverse students. Neurodiverse students are essentially special needs learners who possess academic challenges related to conditions of brain functioning. What will happen as a result of this training activity is that these teachers will now be able to go back and know how to provide differentiated instruction in the classroom, so that children who are typically developing as well as those who have special needs can both be educated in the same setting. Delivered by Lesley University's Institute for English Language Programs beyond Borders in collaboration with the Authentic Caribbean Foundation, the initiative provided hands-on training that will read down to efficient support to neurodiverse learners. These are the children who are in the typical classroom. So the teachers have to be able to provide the necessary interventions for those children, especially because now we are in a time when there is a very push towards inclusion. These children are in the regular classroom, so yes, they need that support. A newly appointed Minister for Education, Sustainable Development, Innovation, Science, Technology and Vocational Training, Honorable Sean Edward. Along with Parliamentary Secretary, Senator Honorable Dr. Pauline Antoine Prosper met with the management team of the Ministry of Education for the first time and greeted staff at the ministry's main office on the castries waterfront. Success in the education fraternity or sector is heavily dependent on the quality of relationship we forge, we forge, that we build with the various stakeholders in education. Teachers' unions, students' councils, parents, I mean, the entire education fraternity must work as one if this Department of Government is to succeed and deliver to the people of this country. The National Commission for UNESCO introduced the UNESCO STEM Education Program in order to build capacity and train teachers to become master trainers in the areas of robotics, artificial intelligence and 3D printing for sustainable development goals, SDGs. The four-day training had as its main mission to inspire the next generation of world thinkers and makers with accessible hands-on robotics and machine learning experiences and to increase awareness and understanding of artificial intelligence by making machine learning, approachable, rewarding, and most of all, fun. The National Commission for UNESCO was also instrumental in donating micro-science kits for primary and secondary schools on the island. The kits will support the delivery of science education by providing teachers and students with the capacity to conduct experiments in a number of subject areas including biology, chemistry, physics, and electricity. And because they are micro-kits, it means that they are portable, they can be carried anyway, and that we do not need to spend large sums of money in the purchasing of reagents and other kinds of material that is needed to use the kits. It means that those kits can be used before students go into an actual laboratory. They get to use equipment. They get to work as scientists anywhere. The Curriculum and Materials Development Unit, Kamdu, held its National Language Policy Implementation Planning Virtual Conference, bringing a wide cross-section of local and regional professionals to chart the way forward for the institutionalizing of the queer language in all aspects of the St. Lucian Society, including the education system. Language specialists working on a language policy for teaching of the queer language in schools are hoping to have the completed implementation and already formulated draft policy presented to government by January of 2022. Literacy development should always begin with students' first language, the native languages, the home languages. And understanding the influence that Quayol has had on students' development of other languages, it is important that this language, not just for linguistic purposes, but also for cultural purposes, be preserved and that the literacy in this language The special education sector benefited from an array of assistive devices and materials to facilitate and enhance the instructional process and support systems for special education learners on the island. Educational services to the population of special school learners require alternative resources and inputs to effect adequate learning and learner development as the services required are significantly different from that of the general student population. So they need stimulation, they need therapy, they need sensory regulation. These are not issues that can be resolved by a teacher standing in front of a classroom or by a laptop and a screen. So it is very important for us that we have these devices to support the targeted needs of these children. The assistive devices were supplied by the Education Quality Improvement Project Equip Unit as a decision coming out of a fact-finding mission undertaken in 2019 in Trinidad and Tobago. Medical professionals provided much-needed answers to questions from parents with special needs children on the COVID-19 virus and on the vaccines that are available to combat the virus. The medical professionals provided answers meant to comfort parents' anxieties about the virus, providing information on a host of their concerns. Some parents are worried about children with special needs being vaccinated, worried about their safety in the COVID environment and we're glad that these pediatricians took time to meet with these parents on an evening, devoted some of their personal time to be available to answer their questions and help inspire them, I think, to get their children vaccinated so that they can safely re-enter the school spaces as soon as permission is given for that. A two-year initiative referred to as the St. Lucia Connected Activity was officially launched. The project funded through a US $1 million grant from the United States Agency for International Development, USAID, is a timely response to the need for building the resilience and capacity of St. Lucia's educational system to address the challenges of online learning posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and to prepare young people to take advantage of the opportunities created by a new digital economy that is driven by technological advancements. You cannot seriously accomplish any objective in creating digital citizens without the citizenry themselves having access to devices. And let me say that it is not enough to just have a device at your disposal. But what you are able to leverage, what you are able to accomplish by having a device is what will determine whether we are making significant strides and taking our rightful places on the global stage. The early childhood services unit reflected on the reopening of the sector as it continued to maintain standards and allay the fears of parents who were still skeptical to send their children to school. Prior to opening, each center had to develop and complete what we called a COVID-19 response plan where they laid out quite clearly what the guidelines would be for their specific center in relation to the various, what I would refer to as the national protocol set by the department. After that, they were inspected by the Department of Environmental Health and if the officers found that everything was in line to the standards, then they were granted approval. This is where it all begins. The foundation is set between those ages and I think it was very critical for them to be at the center during this time for face-to-face interaction in opposed to being at home. One of the things we realized was when they came back, the behavior, it was totally different. They had forgotten the routine and the structure and it was very difficult for the teachers to go through. They had to start over basically to get the children back into routine. COVID-19 continues to deal a heavy blow nationally and as a country, we continue to manage and monitor the pandemic. Today, we really wanted to focus on the education system and focus and highlight one of the schools who basically led the way in terms of innovation, creativity and they basically did not allow the setbacks of the pandemic to prevent them from doing the best that they could. So I have the privilege to be right here with Sister Rufina Donat, who is the principal of the St. Joseph's Convent Secondary School. Sister Rufina, thank you. Thank you, Daniel, for having me on top class. Just generally as a principal, reflect on the year. Give us a brief from when we know we had COVID and then having that initial scare and now just give us that nice reflection as to what was it like managing during that time. Looking over the year, it was a challenge. In fact, it's still a challenge. Looking at all the preparation, looking at your errors, looking at what you needed to improve, especially as a school. We looked at the challenges of the past two online sessions we had. We looked at where we could improve. So we were constantly meeting as a team and revising that every time. We listened to the comments from parents. We listened to the criticisms. We looked at other schools, what worked for them, what was not working for them. And I think it was our best year this time around and because we had everyone involved. And we started off by ensuring that our parents, that we called meetings before school started. And we had our parents involved and we informed them of what our expectations. They shared some of their concerns of what went wrong at the last online session. And I think being able to listen really and we were able to put things together to improve on this new online. What really worked for us too was the last time we met with our students. What we did was ensure that everyone, there was training for everyone with the Google online platform, not just students, but teachers to familiarize themselves with the platform so that a little more was put into it. A lot more of the features were used. So to kind of bring in a little more creativity and dynamics into the teaching. We're going to take a quick break right now with our charter assistant Raphina and I'm going to take you back to top class. Scores of grade six students from the South have received the tablets to facilitate online learning as the distributed learning approach continued amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the last year, the Ministry of Education had pursued several undertakings to support the distributed online learning approach. Some of these include improving internet access at the school plant and providing MiFi devices to households to allow students to be connected and join the virtual classroom. We have quite a number of students who are unable to go online because they do not have a device. So Invest and Lucia has come to our rescue by donating 10 devices to five schools. 50 devices will be donated to the students of district five. These students are from the T-Rochet Combined School, the Monropo Combined School, the Larisuz Combined School, the Richvo Combined School and the Olio Combined School. Minister for Education, Sustainable Development, Innovation, Science, Technology and Vocational Training, Honorable Sean Edward and his parliamentary secretary, Senator Honorable Dr. Pauline Antoine Prosper recognized the sterling efforts of local teachers on World Teachers Day, noting their unwavering support and commitment to their students, despite the toll that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have had on the teaching profession. I really must take the opportunity to thank the hundreds of teachers in this country who have always put themselves on the line for our children. We cannot overemphasize the importance of the role that teachers play in nation-building. And as the Minister for Education, I just want to take the opportunity on behalf of the Honorable Prime Minister, Philip JPA, my colleagues in the Cabinet, the senior management team of the Ministry of Education to tell the teachers of this country how much we appreciate the effort that they make, particularly during the period of the pandemic. We have traversed this pandemic for the past year and a half. I know it has been very challenging to you and probably you may not be able to celebrate as you would have wished today. But on behalf of the Ministry of Education, I would like to wish you a pleasant day. I would like to thank you so much for all the sacrifices that you have made during this pandemic. A UNESCO donation of some 18,000 US dollars to the gender and education sections of government marked the official start of a project which seeks to explore gender disparities in education in St. Lucia and make policy recommendations to close any existing gaps. The project, known as the Gender Dynamics in Academic Attainment of School-Aged Children in St. Lucia before and during COVID-19, has, as its main objectives, to compare the academic performance of male primary school children with that of their female counterparts and to explore the extent to which there are gender disparities in the instruction, assessment, and discipline of primary and secondary school students in St. Lucia. Within the sphere of education, much of the gender-related intervention or rather gender-based intervention have focused on increasing girls' access to education. In several member states, this remains a major obstacle to achieving SDG4 and the attainment of education for all. However, increasingly, UNESCO is recognized in the specific challenges experienced by a number of member states as it relates to boys' performance. We have vested interest in understanding male academic attainment in our current context, given providing gender stereotypes in education and the traditional gender-blind educational curricula, assessment, and disciplinary practices in our educational institution. We cannot ignore the conversation in the broader context of the growing male population in our prisons and the loss of our young men to violence and suicide. Secondary school students received new educational resources for French and natural sciences as Camdo officially handed over donations received from the kind patronage of the National Commission for UNESCO, the Martini Consulate, and a donor by the name of Mr. Nelvin Alphos. The initiative is expected to directly and positively impact the teaching and learning process for science and the French and rouse excitement in students. A new Board of Governors to run the affairs of the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College was commissioned by the government of St. Lucia. The tertiary learning institution is currently transitioning to university status and has recently announced the addition of a number of new bachelor programs to its offerings. Selected on the basis of experience and skill, the new Board is chaired by former director of the Department of Sustainable Development of the Organization of American States, Cleeter Springer. Other members of the new SALCC Board of Governors include former chief education officer, Fortuna Anthony as deputy chair, first vice president of the National Youth Council, Adjani Laban, former independent senator and permanent secretary in the Ministry of Infrastructure, ports and transport, Dr. Allison Gadjada, former communications and works minister, Felix Finister and retired dean of the division of teacher education and educational administration of the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College, Dr. Anthony Felicier. The Ministry of Education gave the green light for schools to return to face-to-face instruction for kindergarten, grade six and forms four and five after much consultation with stakeholders and guidance from the Ministry of Health and Wellness. After registering a further decline in the COVID transmission on the island, phase two of the reopening of school was executed when the remainder of class groups were allowed into the physical classroom. It would seem that the students had been there for the entire year and they were happy to be back at school. We are social beings and students want to interact with their peers, want to meet face-to-face with their teachers and some of them feel that they learn better this way and so the Ministry of Education is very happy that we were able to get to this stage. We have been getting very positive feedback from all schools with reference to the students returning to school. Now, as we speak, what is important now is the academic performance and along with that now, the social upbringing and the emotional, psychological aspect of it with reference to school. So returning face-to-face, it has more to it than just simply the knowledge aspect of it. Some 60 grade six students from the Roso and Denyerivir Primary School became recipients of tablets equipped with ConkerMaths, an award-winning online resource designed to help students understand and master mathematics. The project, which is a collaboration with the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States, the OECS and the C-PAL Holdings, signals the beginning of the pilot called the Mathematics Remedial ConkerMaths Initiative, seeking to improve the levels of performance in mathematics among common entrance class groups. ConkerMaths is an award-winning online resource for all ages and abilities designed to help students understand and master mathematics. The program breaks topics down into bite-sized lessons and uses videos that are not longer than 10 minutes to teach students concepts and show them how problems can be solved. Students can replay any part of a video as many times as they need in order to master the concept. At the end of each video, there is a question to assess the students' understanding of the topic and to give them an opportunity to practice the skills or principles they have learned. How we engage you through the computer has to be something that really grabs your attention because I'm sure if I come on these devices this evening and tell you, let's play a game. All of you will be on and we'll be on the hours you'll want to be playing the game. So we have to change the approach to teaching and learning so that it will get you as excited about learning. The MECO Library became better prepared to execute online programs and activities as the Ministry of Education presented it with a consignment of digital devices. The occasion came with government's registered commitment to the reintroduction of the laptop program to secondary schools that will ensure that students at that level are not just able to use new technologies but will be provided with devices required to efficiently undertake their studies. We have given the populace the assurance that the children of Zendushia will not be left behind. We are now at a stage in our development as a country where a laptop or a tablet is no longer a luxurious item. We also like to thank the New Zealand fund for ensuring that they made this possible in the first place. And as you know, we are a government that puts people first. We understand the importance of search devices, especially given the COVID environment and the challenges brought about by the COVID environment. So we know that this will go a long way in not just assisting but continuing what has been started. And I know that the librarians look forward to receiving these donations. Winners of the 2021 Quayol poem competition funded by UNESCO received prices and commendation for their contributions to the national competition at a prize-giving ceremony at the Finance Administrative Centre. Third place went to Jameson Edward. Second place to Rochelle Victor. And the first place title was captured by Anna Zilter-Tench. My name is Anna Zilter-Tench. It was a pleasure taking part in this competition. I always love our Quayol language because it's more expressive than English. And I believe it's a wonderful thing that UNESCO is promoting to have this competition because it encourages me, because I took part last year, it encourages me to do better and learn more. So I didn't expect I would win. I just wanted to take part. An essay competition which challenged the young St. Lucians between the ages of 15 and 30 years to make suggestions to help improve the local economic situation and build a more diversified economy came to a successful end with a prize-giving ceremony at the offices of the Ministry of Education. In the end, Lincoln Francis won the top prize of $1,000 while Chelsea Desulc was awarded second place and $600 and Zidane Hadid received third place and a cash prize of $400. And I see COVID-19 as a really... Something like a... I wouldn't want to use it in great recess because I know there's a lot of baggage to it, but it has presented the opportunity for change. And I think that we can still ride that wave as St. Lucians in changing and doing things differently. Our St. Lucian young men who, as much as they live overseas, have shown an interest in the development of youth in St. Lucian. You must be applauded for your efforts, for your writing, for your engagement with the youth. We are so very pleased. We could... I wish all the young men who had traveled overseas would have joined with you to engage our youth because our youth is the future of our country. And I do not have enough words to thank you for organizing this essay competition. You're watching Top Class. Stay with us as we continue our discussion with Sister Rupina Donat, principal at the St. Joseph's Convent. I can imagine that you're doing other things like the etiquette for online classes and other things. Yes, yes. That was very important for us. Can you say a little bit more about that? You know, they had to dress. They had to come their hair. What are the other things that, you know, they had to do to ensure that learning and teaching continued productively? Okay. One of the things that we've... If the online etiquette that... We also had to address parents on the online etiquette that they don't just jump into a teacher's class and say what you feel or express. There's a forum for that. And you know the availability of the teacher, the emails, you know, if you have a concern. So, and there are lots of skills that we had to teach. We had the opportunity to teach. Like the soft skills that was so important for the students now that we could have... We could meet them as a group because we can no longer do that at school. So the little skills that are necessary to build the child because it's not just the academics. So how you respond to each other. You know, the respect for each other's space because each one of us is in somebody's home. Online lessons you are in people's houses. So there are situations where we had to tell where we encourage students to change their backgrounds. Change their backgrounds. There's no looking at to see, okay, this person's house is better than mine. Because all these things happen, they may seem as minor, but they can have an impact on the child. So you wanted everybody, but that's why it was important that all of them dress in a uniform. So that the focus is on what's happening in the classroom. And not what this person is wearing, how this person's house is. And respect for each other. That was so important during that time. Respect for each other. I can imagine a lot of patience. A lot of patience, a lot of patience, and a lot of understanding too. And you know, many times we have to say to parents, teachers have their own children in their homes that they also have to supervise when you have toddlers, when you have children in kindergarten, you have to guide. So we had to ask to create a balance. And hence the reason why we gave a 15 minute break after every subject area. To allow people that signed that break to do something. Because children were caring for siblings at home too. So now that we have somewhat of a blended approach now, 2022 we're at the end of the year. What are we looking at for the next year, 2022? What message do you have for parents, students, teachers? You know, I know you have to give your commendation to people as well. But you know, let's talk about what the new year is going to look like moving forward amidst this pandemic. Looking forward, I would love to see every child coming to school every day, really, really. Because we're realizing the difficulties. We've seen the setbacks where children are becoming dull in many areas. One of the things I think we have to look at, and this one is on the discussion, looking at methods now in instruction that would really motivate students, really motivate students into learning and to be creative and to develop the critical thinking skills that we want to. We need to look at how we, and I'm speaking to parents, so how do we teach our children to be resilient? We're looking at skills of empathy in light of all of this thing that's happening with COVID. How do people relate to each other? How do people respect and understand each other and realize that the book knowledge is not the important thing that is going to take us through. That the other skills that the students must learn, they must learn that respect, they must learn to nation-building. Because all of this, all of what's happening now calls for commitment and responsibility, Daniel. We cannot just think of ourselves. We have to look at each other. We have to look at what am I doing? The impact it has on the other person. Is it positive? Am I helping this person? Or is it just for me? And more and more we are realizing our children are so self-centered. Everything is about them. And our community has to think differently. We have to think community. And it has to start with school. It has to start in the home. That is the only way we can build our country. We have to start looking at teaching our children to volunteer services, not just to get into a university, but to do it for nation-building. Do it for nation-building. And this is going to be our focus. This is going to be our focus. The skills that we are going to teach, we are going to try to help our children to be more community-centered and less self-centered. I had so much fun talking to Sister Afina. And I hope you guys get to have a greater understanding of what it's like to really manage a school and to see the education system and the community life of education and the school system stay together. So with that, I want to say thank you and I'm going to take you back to top class. The Denri Primary School sang the praises of a SIDIMA-funded project which helped strengthen the security capacity of the institution and to also safeguard it from fire hazard. We've had situations where things from the secondary school would spill over, disputes spill over to our compound because of the openness our resources have been tampered with. So with the fencing for sure, we know that we have a better leverage in terms of controlling who comes in, what happens on our school compound. So given that we're now closed and we have our caretaker, he is able to filter who comes in, direct them to the office so our children can play in a safer environment and we all can work in a safer environment. I feel like it helps children mentally and physically concentrate from school and not get distracted from criminals and uninvited guests outside and like focus on their schoolwork. Well, for the fire extinguishers, you never know what could happen, especially that the cook's in the kitchen and anything could go wrong and they could start a fire. So I just want to thank the principal for having the fire extinguisher in the school. Before when the fence was not here, parts would mostly speed to the campus of the school and most likely they would have students running around. An anonymous donor made it possible for 20 students of the Moshi RSE Primary School to engage in online study by providing them with their own laptop devices. The preparation of the devices of the relevant software and the presentation to students were facilitated by the Ministry of Education. I know parents, you know, how difficult it is to get devices for your children and I know during the time that your children were at home, it was a challenge to do their work. It was a challenge to access the work online so that your students could do the best. So in that case, we would find some students are able to access the information and some other students are not able to access the classes. And so we are trying to see whether we can put that balance together. So, well, I am praying and I'm sure that you are praying to parents and teachers that the COVID numbers remain low and that our children can continue to be at school. Because we know that there are good things happening at Moshi Combine and you have the potential to do very well. So you want you to keep up the good work students, parents continue to support your children in everything that they do. The teachers cannot do it on their own. You have to be the ones guiding them and not only for common entrance, but throughout when they move into secondary school, even beyond moving into Sa'afa, Lewis or into university, the support that you give goes a very long way in ensuring that your students receive the type of education that they deserve. An education platform initiative tailored to the needs of St. Louisian educators received its official launch at a ceremony held at the NSDC conference room. The education platform funded by the Taiwanese government is a classroom management system that will facilitate class presentation and interactive assignments and will also be used to monitor and record student learning performances. As a cross-development partner of Sanusha, Taiwan will continue to work with the people and government of Sanusha to help achieve the goal of making education a right, not a privilege and a means to unlocking the full human potential of every citizen for the good of the citizen and the community. We waited patiently as a country for the CXC results. We also waited very patiently for the common entrance results and based on what our students were able to produce, then we were in a position to decide whether we were doing well or we were falling behind. In the year 2021, this cannot be the barometer to measure the effectiveness of your education system. The world is a very dynamic place, constantly changing and we have to put in place programs that will cause our citizens to adapt and to make meaningful contributions to make Sanusha and my extension the world a better place. Parents of students attending public schools were relieved of the stress of meeting payments for facilities fees for the academic year 2021 to 2022. Prime Minister Hon. Philip J. Pien in assuming office on July 26, 2021 vowed that his administration in adopting a people-focused agenda would absorb the cost of facilities fees for all students at the primary and secondary levels. On Thursday, 21st October, 2021, the Ministry of Education presented principles with check payments totaling $2.6 million. Staff and students of the PI Combined Primary School are set to enjoy new facilities, constructed and commissioned by the kind patronage of the people and the government of Japan. A new toilet facility for students, a lunch area, as well as a refurbished bathroom and a staff room for teachers who are officially commissioned under the grant assistance for grassroots human security project, the GGP. We are very pleased that this project has been completed in time despite the extraordinary circumstances due to the pandemic. We highly commend to those who have been involved in implementing this project and also I'm very happy to see students are so glad to have new facilities. We have already stated before that no one government can actually meet the needs of every child or every school in St. Lucia. And for this reason, that's why we partner with our other government agencies throughout the Caribbean and throughout the world, let me say. And then Japan has continued to work with us. We know what they're doing with infrastructure and order departments that with education, more specifically, mathematics is an area of concern. In January, when the students came into school, they were welcomed with a new toilet facility. Our students have been so happy to be in this new environment and we are happy that our students can now have a comfortable sanitary environment. And as we know that our environment, the students' environment will impact learning and this happens every day. And so we are so pleased and happy that the government and people of Japan came to our aid. They assisted with such a huge grant and today we can all see the fruits of that labor. Ministry of Education, Sustainable Development, Innovation, Science, Technology and Fogational Trading paid CXC, CSEC fees for mathematics and English A on behalf of Form 5 students, writing the May-June 2022 exams. Government also refunded any parent who had already paid fees for the two CXC, CSEC subjects. Prime Minister Hon. Philip J. Pierre, Minister with Responsibility for Education, Hon. Sean Edward and the Parliamentary Secretary, Senator Hon. Pauline Antoine Prosper undertook a tour of the decommission George Charles Secondary School Building, along with officials from the Ministry of Education and the local media. The prime minister lamented the state of the compound named after the island's first chief minister, the late Sir George F. L. Charles, while Minister for Education Hon. Sean Edward pledged that the facility will be recommissioned and repurposed to serve the people of St. Lucia. So to have a school named after him or building him after him in that situation is really, really, really sad. It's telling. We have to find a way to treat our heroes, and then the tour headed today really shows that as a country, we have to have more respect for our heroes, we have to have more respect for our institutions. As an immediate first step, we will look to clean up this place and subsequent to this place be cleaned up. I will be taken to the Cabinet of Ministers, and a memo that will look at possible or alternative uses as far as this facility is concerned. The Ministry of Education signed a memorandum of understanding with US-based NGO Stuff United Fund Incorporated, which is hoped will facilitate the narrowing of the digital gap locally to the provision of training for teachers and students in the area of coding with an emphasis on animation and gaming. Facilitated by the Embassy of Taiwan to St. Lucia, the three-year project has as its main purpose to teach secondary school teachers about writing gaming coding language called Scratch, which is an easy-to-learn drag-and-drop computerized system. Over the past 12 years in operation, staff conducted global philanthropic project over 32 countries. With Headquarter Office in New York, this African Center in Uganda, and Asia Pacific Center in Taiwan. Staff, STUF, means sharing, trust, unity, and family. In mentoring, it is also means World Taiwan. That is why Staff United Fund is also doing business as World Taiwan Foundation. In other words, you cannot speak of technology in the school system, where you only provide devices to students. We must go beyond just the provision of devices. And we're saying here today, as is reflected in everything that we've done by our policy formulation, that an education system for the 21st century inevitably means teaching coding in schools. Coding is a must in technology instruction in our school system. Although the continued challenges of the COVID pandemic threw off its usual events scheduled in January, the Ministry of Education was able to successfully honor and present awards to top achievers at Common Entrance, CSEC, and CAPE examinations when it held its 13th Annual National Awards of Excellence at the National Cultural Center on December 9th, 2021. The event conducted before an audience of just awardees was held in commemoration of the Island's Observance of National Day. The Ministry is hoping to execute the 2022 component of the event early in the new year in observance of the Island's independence activities. What does this say about you students? It says that you are students who are flexible, adaptive, and resilient. It says that you have in your DNA the characteristics and the qualities to succeed no matter what the circumstances. Your performance at these assessment levels send a signal to us at the Department of Education. This indicator of excellence tells us that if our students can continue to perform at such exceptional standards on the trying conditions and in an environment of much uncertainty and trepidation, we at the Department of Education need to match their efforts with resources and policies to promote growth, development, success, and excellence. Minister for Education Honorable Sean Edward joined the St. Lucia School of Ballet and Modern Dance for an evening of dance and celebration, highlighting student success and certification at the Royal Academy of Classical Dance Examinations. The St. Lucia School of Ballet and Modern Dance follows the examination syllabi of the Royal Academy of Dance and the Imperial Society of Teacher of Dancing, both based in the United Kingdom and the largest examining body and training body for Classical Ballet in the world. Both programs provide standardized training and assessment of student in ballet, modern dance, and tap. The St. Lucia Sports Academy executed a sports summit for 25 grade six students, representing 13 primary schools on the island. The exercise which resulted in the assessment of students' ability in several disciplines resulted in each receiving participation certificates. The initiative is part of the Sports Academy's coaching and the leadership development program. Really we were very happy with the group that we saw today. We know from our recruitment efforts in the past that it does allow us to bring in youth with talent and with potential, but also youth that have strong academic performance as well. We just finished up parent conferences this week at the Sports Academy and the feedback that we have so far is that from the academic side of the house, when we hold our standards, we are able to attract very good students here and we see an improved and ever-increasing academic performance on behalf of our student-athletes and we see that translate into their performances and their passion on the field. Well, that's how we come to the end of top class. As we reviewed the happenings in the education sector for the first term of the 2021-2022 academic year. On behalf of the production team of the communications unit and the management and staff of the Ministry of Education, I am Daniel Dubois. Until next time, class dismissed.