Toledo school comes up large on P.S.E.

Every year top finishers in the Primary School Examinations point to the support of teachers and their parents for their exemplary performances. And while this year was no different, tonight students from a village in the Toledo District are being hailed as poster children for an online education program that has, in just one year, made a big difference in their grades. News Five’s Janelle Chanona explains.

Miguel Vairez, Principal, San Pedro Columbia R.C.
“I must say that the set of kids we had this year I thought wouldn’t make a good score you know. But with the help of this program, they did the unexpected.”

Janelle Chanona, Reporting
Today three students from San Pedro Columbia R.C. School were honoured by their teachers at during a special ceremony in Belize City for their performance in the Primary School Examinations. Cordelia Kile’s ninety-one point seven five was actually the best for the Toledo District, but Oscar Requeña’s eighty-six point seven five and Jennifer Jackson’s eighty-five point seven five were also significantly higher than the national average. The students’ marked improvement in the P.S.E. over previous years is being attributed by their school’s participation in an online education program jointly sponsored by oil exploration company C.H.X. and the Foundation for Academic Innovation.

Miguel Vairez
“What is good about it is if the child is a slow learner, then the child would be working at his or her own speed whereas the bright child can advance with no problem. The only thing we need to have is that the teachers and need to be ahead of them in the sense that the teachers and the mentors need to always be assigning work to them so that the bright children can go on and the slower ones can take their time and catch up with them.”

Jennifer Jackson, Student, San Pedro Columbia R.C.
“The computer asks if you want a second chance and you can answer it again or the computer asks if you want it to answer it for you and it gives you a hint of what you need to answer.”

Cordelia Kile, Top P.S.E. Scorer, Toledo
“I so surprised when I see my grade because I mi think it mi wah deh inna di seventies or something.”

Janelle Chanona
“You never feel good after the exam?”

Cordelia Kile
“Yeah, ih mi okay but I mi kinda disappointed bout mi English because dehn seh, well dehn seh I talk too much kriol inna class and so and afterwards I supposed to talk English as first language and all ah dat.”

Janelle Chanona
“Weh you mi do when you find out your grade?”

Oscar Requeña, Student San Pedro Columbia R.C.
“Nothing I just get excited and I mi wah tell everybody I pass.”

Janelle Chanona
“What would you like to say to the other students, the people that are coming behind in Standard five, Standard four, that they should get excited about this program?”

Oscar Requeña
“That they should take advantage of this program because it really helps.”

According to Margo Branscomb, Academic Innovation’s Executive Director, there are plans to expand the program to other schools, but participants have to do their part for the software to spell success.

Margo Branscomb, Foundation for Academic Innovation
“Total commitment from the principal first, the parents and teachers second and then desire by the students to show everybody that they can do it. It just takes, if you want to learn, the extra tools will give you an extra edge. You already are in good classes but this gives you that extra piece.”

Alex Cranberg, C.H.X.
“We think this is a great technology, it’s a great approach. Kids love to work and learn around computers and televisions and part of what our commitment is wherever we are active is to help the education process. We think that education is the key to growth and learning and the creed to prosperity. We think oil and gas business is key to prosperity but second to education.”

Ismael Requeña, National Council of Education
“I will say in Maya and in Ketchi (Speaking Mayan) which I mean I am very happy for you to be here. (Speaking Mayan) You need to not stop here but continue and do more.”

All three students will start high school in September. Reporting for News Five, I am Janelle Chanona.

The Compass curriculum used in the online software covers concepts in Mathematics, Language Arts, Science and Social Studies. The students at San Pedro Columbia R.C. started participating in the online classes in August. Of the forty-two students who sat the P.S.E. this year, only one child scored below fifty percent.