New education minister pledges focus on early childhood development

Newly appointed Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Dana Morris Dixon, has pledged to "unlock the potential of every child impacted by the ministry's institutions," with a focus on early childhood development.

Senator Morris Dixon's appointment follows Fayval Williams' transition Wednesday to the role of Minister of Finance and the Public Service. Morris Dixon was previously a minister without portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for information, skills, and digital transformation. She joined the administration in May 2023. 

During her tour of the ministry's Kingston head office today, Morris Dixon, who is also a senator, highlighted the importance of effective education for national development.

“I am here to work with you. The success of the Ministry of Education means the success of our country, and so I am here to work as hard as I can as we improve our country,” she said. 

“This Ministry is about our children, and there are so many beautiful, bright, young children out there who can do big things for Jamaica and for the world. They just need us to move some things out of the way,” she added.

Morris Dixon identified early childhood education as a top priority, emphasising her intention to build on existing efforts.

“We're going to have to magnify them, let the world know what we're doing and really ensure that no child is left behind. For me, there are some things that are important, [and] early childhood education, that is the critical thing. We are going to have to focus there because, throughout the entire system, we are remediating every step of the way. So, yes, we have to continue the remediation, but we have to ensure that we get early childhood right,” she said.

Minister Morris Dixon also affirmed her commitment to children with special needs and those in State care, as well as raising literacy and numeracy standards. “This ministry, especially over the last few years, has done tremendous work in improving the services for our children with special needs, and that is something that we're going to continue,” she noted.

On literacy and numeracy, she added, “We cannot have any child leave our schools not able to read. We should not have any child who is not proficient in mathematics leaving our schools, and that's our great challenge. Our challenge is unleashing the potential of every child that comes into our educational institutions, and I am sure it can be done.”

- JIS News

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