The Catholic Education Board of Management (CEBM) is seeking to engage consultants to assist with the transformation of its primary schools and claims that its strategic intent is to have in Trinidad and Tobago, the best schools in the world.

Following an extensive analysis and assessment of the environment in which the schools managed by the CEBM operate, it has been determined that focus should be placed on five specific areas of activity.

These are:

• Strengthening the academic education offered;
• Strengthening spiritual and non-academic education;
• Increasing parenting skills and parental participation;
• Strengthening critical partnerships to enable better access to all possible resources; and
• Improving governance, leadership skills and performance management.

The CEBM agrees that for success in the outlined areas of activity, there is need to improve the quality of leadership and management in its schools and building better inter-personal relationships and teamwork and developing closer linkages with parents.

It is also felt that there is a need to increase the Board’s capability to deliver Information Communication Technology (ICT) education.

To complement these plans however, teachers must play an integral role to see it through. The Board therefore sees the necessity to enhance the academic teaching competencies; their specialist teaching competencies; their non-academic teaching competencies, as well as the ability to enhance the use of ICT in their work.

The CEBM’s implementation of this strategic plan would be carried out in phases with the intervention being focused on three leverage points: Leadership (for principals), literacy and parental participation and education.

Vernon Khelawan