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~ Teachers lauded for work at WTD event ~

CAY HILL--Public school teachers with perfect attendance records during the last academic year were rewarded with a token of appreciation during the World Teacher's Day (WTD) ceremony at the Belair Community Center on Saturday evening.

The group of teachers were each presented with a cheque of NAf. 250 as well as a certificate of appreciation. World Teachers Day was Sunday, October 5, but the official ceremony for teachers was held on Saturday evening.

Presented with financial awards were five teachers from the Marie Geneieve de Weever School; three teachers from the Leonald Conner School (formerly Leonard Conner School); two teachers each from the Charles Leopold Bell School and the Ruby Labega School and one teacher each from the Oranje School and the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School.

Head of Public Schools Glenderlyn Davis-Holiday said the award was intended to promote good attendance at schools. This is the second year the school is recognising teachers for attendance. Davis-Holiday urged teachers to see their jobs as a vocation and not just as an area to earn an income at the end of the month. "When you teach and when you love children, you reap the rewards," she said. "To teach is to love and to love teaching is a previous gift."

All teachers were lauded for their service in the classroom at the well-attended event, which brought together teachers from the various school boards. Several school boards plan to have separate events for its teachers.

Education Minister Patricia Lourens-Philip thanked teachers for the work that they do and the sacrifice they make on a daily basis as they go about doing their work. She said teachers sacrificed time, talent, family life, family finances and personal ambitions to help mould young minds in the classroom. Successful schools, she added, are run by good teachers and successful schools lead to a successful country.

She said the reception was held in honour of teachers and it gave all education partners – government, ministry, school boards and union – an opportunity to publicly acknowledge that to invest in a teacher is to invest in the future, as teachers touch the lives of every person as they develop as human beings.

Another motivation for the reception was as a result of the evaluation of last year's conference in which teachers said they wanted "something fun" to be held for this year's World Teachers Day. The fun was injected towards the end of Saturday night's WTD event with a cocktail reception and dancing to tunes provided by DJ Oswald.

Windward Islands Teachers Union (WITU) President Claire Elshot spoke about adequate remuneration for educators. She said the union had a "little warning" for educator regarding working without extra without monies. She said teachers need to give the best to students, but authorities also need to "keep up" with the remuneration to educators since many teachers go into their own pockets to purchase things for their classrooms. Her comments resulted in a loud round of applause from the capacity crowd.

Representatives of several school boards addressed attendees. Amongst them was Methodist Agogic Center (MAC) Director Rose Hughes-Coram, who thanked teachers for inspiring children to be the best that they can be, and urged them to continue planting seeds of knowledge in them. She said persons should think of teachers every day and the "very important" role that they have in preparing students for a world that they have not seen.