NASSAU, Bahamas, August 13, 2024 — In an effort to improve the teaching and learning of Mathematics throughout The Bahamas, the Ministry of Education and Technical and Vocational Training (MOETVT) on Wednesday, August 7, 2024, signed an agreement with Sapphire Education and Communication Development Services, a Bahamian math consultancy firm.
The objectives of the contract include strengthening the pedagogical skills and deepening the content knowledge of teachers of Mathematics throughout the country; diagnosing the challenges to learning Mathematics as presented by students at all levels of the system; and determining the match between the expected curriculum outcomes and the availability of human and material resources.
In response to a 10 — year review of the results of the Grade Level Assessment Test (GLAT) which indicated a national underachievement in Mathematics, the MOETVT was compelled to address anxieties surrounding the subject. Consequently, Sapphire Education and Communication Development Services was selected from a group of candidates responding to a recent Request for Proposal by the MOETVT.
Principal Consultant Valarie Seymour, in representing the firm, expressed her company’s pleasure and commitment to addressing concerns surrounding Mathematics by conducting a one-year study purposed to discover the cause of the challenges and to find necessary solutions.
Minister of Education and Technical and Vocational Training Glenys Hanna Martin noted that the move can bring about a paradigm shift in education in The Bahamas.
“I think the system has failed the students. We have to work and see what it is we should be doing. The Ministry is excited about the project,” Minister Hanna Martin said.
Also present for the signing were Acting Permanent Secretary Sonia Culmer, Director of Education Dominique McCartney-Russell, Assistant Director of Education Terrice Curry, and Assistant Director of Education Joan Rolle.
