‘No small achievement’
Officials celebrate 300 certified early childhood institutions
Published:Wednesday | October 12, 2022 | 12:09 AMAinsworth Morris/Staff Reporter
Three years after the Early Childhood Commission (ECC) should have certified 300 basic schools, the goal has finally been achieved.
In May 2016, there was a three-year engagement of a new board of commissioners for the ECC targeting 300 early childhood institutions (ECIs) to be certified by 2019.
On Tuesday morning, the milestone was celebrated with Cleveland Porter ECI being the 300th certified school.
“It feels good that we set a target in 2016, that we want to achieve 300 schools and we have achieved it, and I am confident that we will be having many more coming on board, and with the modernisation of the sector, I’m happy to say that ‘Give Jamaica another couple years, [and] we’ll see the greatness has been bestowed on us and that we are known for’,” ECC Chairman Trisha Williams-Singh said as the commission held a cake-cutting ceremony to toast the occasion at its offices in downtown Kingston yesterday.
The schools were certified based on the 12 operational standards set by the ECC. These standards cover a wide range of areas, including staffing; developmental/educational programmes; interactions and relationships with children; the physical environment; indoor and outdoor equipment, furnishing and supplies; health; nutrition; safety; child rights, child protection and equality; interactions with parents and community members; administration; and finance.
Williams-Singh stressed that the most important aspect of certification is staffing.
“That’s number one, so if you think about it, not only that we care, we are ensuring that when you send your children to an institution, that whatever is required to ensure that they achieve their development, it is happening,” she said.
“Today is not only historic about the fact that we have certified 300 schools, but it also speaks to the continued investment and the fact that as a nation, Jamaica is the only country in the Caribbean that actually has a law ... that speaks to early childhood development,” she added.
For her part, Education Minister Fayval Williams said it was a significant milestone, crediting the success to the hard work of social workers and early childhood practitioners.
“This is no small achievement as it has required countless hours of selection, training, investment in infrastructural development and guidance to ensure that managers of these institutions understand the importance of operating within the required [parameters] and taking the steps to adhere to that,” Williams said.
She said it was good that this achievement was done in 2022 – which was proclaimed the Year of Early Childhood Development in Jamaica – and also noted the strength of the team at the ECC.
“We know that over the past 12 years, the Early Childhood Commission has undertaken an extensive drive to register all early childhood institutions … . Since I’ve been here, we have not been shy to close down, once we have considered [and] determined [an institution] not to be safe for our children,” she said.
On the other hand, Williams said some Jamaicans need to understand fully what these standards are until they become known in households.