After watching many of their crops wilt and die in a five-month-long drought, some struggling farmers in Chudleigh, Manchester, have been reduced to tears. The long-awaited rains have been so heavy and persistent that the remaining crops on much of...
After three weeks of poring over head-scratching numbers and permutations, Dr Parris Lyew-Ayee Jr is just about done collating the data he needs to craft a road map to face-to-face engagement in the COVID-19 era. Then comes the hard part: piecing...
Some 36,000 needy students not registered on the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH) will be able to benefit from vouchers towards the purchase of tablets or laptops. Minister of Education, Youth and Information Fayval...
Grade seven students Sameerah Dyer and Salama Abdul-Majeed are over the moon about their performance in the recent Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) exams as they aced principles of business with a grade one with distinction and a...
United States-based, Jamaican Stephanie Dunstan is seeking to expand the reach of the Mavis Scarlett Foundation, which was formed in 2016 and incorporated in 2018. Her grandmother, in whose honour the foundation is named, worked as a librarian at...
Otisa Wilmoth, head girl of the St James-based Green Pond High School last academic year, has emerged as the top performer at the institution in the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations. Wilmoth, who loves competition, has...
Tasseika Dunn’s story is one of resilience. The 19-year-old graduate of Mount Alvernia High School in Montego Bay, St James, is now seeing a financial hurdle as the latest obstacle blocking the path to her dream. She is, however, not new to...
As some Caribbean countries delay the start to the 2020-2021 academic year because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the regional examination body is already in discussions about next year’s sitting. Home-based learning has begun in Trinidad while...
With the 2020-2021 academic year set to officially get under way soon, questions are being raised about the feasibility of teaching all classes remotely and the rubric to maintain consistent criteria for grading students at home. During a Gleaner...
School administrators and teachers are growing increasingly concerned over the inability of many students to access lessons remotely as they prepare to resume classes in a few weeks. The disruption to the academic calendar could also mean shortened...
Quality customer service is proving vital to business continuity and pivoting for large and small entities hoping to stay afloat and survive in an environment where their original business models are not fully sustainable. While some have been able...
Come October 5, distance learning will become the reality for tens of thousands of students, and Jamaican Shamir Saddler is hoping to help schools improve their educational and administrative processes. Saddler is the CEO of SmartTerm, a United...
An unplanned stop along Port Royal Street in Kingston for a Digicel Rising Stars video shoot last week revealed a trail of plastic bottles on the coastline of the Kingston Harbour. “When I looked along the coastline, I couldn’t believe the amount...
The scale of economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that Jamaica’s social safety net needs to be widened and deepened, sociologist Dr Orville Taylor has asserted. The preliminary findings of a recent study conducted by UNICEF...
“Boy, finding food is hectic. Dem eat more now and me haffi find breakfast, lunch and dinner.” That was the response of Lisa*, a mother of four living in west Kingston, when asked how her family has been coping since the COVID-19 pandemic. Two of...
With one person around the world committing suicide every 40 seconds, a local suicidologist is urging Jamaicans to look out for signs of distress in others around them and reach out to assist them, getting professional help if necessary, to steer...
Jamaican online learning and exam preparation platform EduFocal has launched a Primary Exit Profile (PEP) Academy for students in grades four to six. The academy will offer a full-day online learning programme Monday through Friday from 8:15 a.m....
AT LEAST one Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) supporter is convinced that Joan Gordon-Webley should not have crossed the political floors to the People’s National Party (PNP). Eunice Solomon, a resident of St Andrew East Rural, told The Gleaner that she...
Jamaican diplomat Patsy Blair Robertson, esteemed for her work in the Commonwealth, is being remembered by her son for her intelligence, passion for life, commitment to justice, and love for Jamaica. Robertson died on August 18 in the United...
Between general and municipal polls over the years, fashion designer Judith Dennis has been an election day worker 10 times, describing her experiences as “fair”. “Luckily for me, I haven’t seen any violence or problems. Smooth,” she told The...
When Karis Bailey’s daughter was about to graduate from Westwood High School 16 years ago, she wanted to give her a meaningful and long-lasting gift. This gave birth to KaRis Kreations, which started out as a hobby for Bailey, and now has...
JAMAICA’S SCHOOLS were shuttered in mid-March as a means of curtailing the spread of COVID-19, and as the date for reopening draws near, parents are doubtful that face-to-face classes will be a reality. Jacqueline Clayton, a resident of Port Royal...
Ronald ‘Ronnie’ Thwaites, a man of the cloth, who also wears the hat of family man, politician, lawyer, journalist and talk show host. Thwaites, who has been the Kingston Central member of parliament since 1997, will not be seeking re-election in...
The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information will be offering psychosocial sessions for students during the month of September. Owing to the spike in COVID-19 cases, the phased reopening of schools has been delayed until October 5. Schools...
Homes on edge, a truck held up by its fuel tank on the riverbank, and an uprooted utility pole resulting in a power outage. It was a scene residents of Eight Miles in Bull Bay, St Thomas, said they have never seen before. Severe weather associated...
