I paid more detailed attention to the Budget debates this year because our country is so down. The Opposition had little fresh content to offer. Most contributions represented attempts to fight over the General Election, which it lost nine weeks ago. The Opposition is so bazodee that, despite its recent …
Read More »Virtual lessons in the time of Covid-19: Day in the life of a school teacher
“[…] Tutors face many challenges in this pandemic era that they possibly were not prepared for at teaching college. Most students are technologically savvy, and in the age of memes and TikTok, teachers are at risk of being ridiculed…” Today Wired868 features a secondary school visual arts teacher with more …
Read More »Daly Bread: Bake, dumpling, cereal and banking czars—a people out of touch
As a small boy, I grew up knowing that my single parent mother was in a sou sou. Many decades later I have lived to read that the current governor of the Central Bank was surprised to learn of the extent of the practice of sou sou. The czars of …
Read More »Dear Editor: T&T’s bureaucratic education system doesn’t reward success or punish failure
“[…] Public Education is the only industry we have in which if you do a good job, nothing good happens; and if you do a bad job nothing bad happens to you. If we do not change this fact, we will not get better schools…” The following letter to the …
Read More »Hotep: The ‘powers that be’ need you to blame Morvant—to hide their own crimes against the people
“[…] How many business people can write an honest account explaining their rags to riches story, or share a history that can serve as a roadmap for others? “If any of them opt for the challenge they would have to omit the bribes and protection money they pay, the tax …
Read More »Keita: Trinidad’s crime problem isn’t down to bad seeds—it is bad soil
For five consecutive years, I taught a youth program where the underlying theme was to teach young people to bloom where they were planted. It was about teaching them to use the resources in their environment to be their best selves. I stopped teaching that program when it became abundantly …
Read More »Noble: The Nobodies; ‘invisible to all, scorned by all’—Morvant vs the world
Last Saturday, three men were shot dead in their neighbourhood at about 2.30pm. Six hours after, the newspapers went to press not knowing the identity of two of the men while the other one was more likely to be named as ‘Warlord’. They were nobodies. On social media, some rejoiced …
Read More »Daly Bread: Deyalsingh and the St Joseph youth; take some more advice nuh
In the midst of a week of murder upon murder, and more police ‘ole talk’ but few arrests, Terrence Deyalsingh, the Minister of Health, gave an interview last Wednesday morning, in which he incidentally touched on not catching the persons who bring in the cocaine. The interview contained his assessment …
Read More »Daly Bread: Bounce or bounce down; how long will govt’s Covid-19 ‘high’ last?
The prejudice thing, usually ill-concealed, is more plainly visible because members and ambassadors of the privileged classes persist in making incautious statements as they feel the heat generated by the George Floyd killing in the US. However, as the soon-come General Election 2020 is taking over the top news spot, …
Read More »Rowley: Two more weeks of lockdown, with four days off for good behaviour; re-opening within sight
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley has asked Trinidad and Tobago to accept another 14 days of economic restrictions and floated the possibility of a lift within 10 days if all goes well. Rowley, accompanied by chief medical officer Dr Roshan Parasram and epidemiologist Dr Avery Hinds, confirmed that the twin …
Read More »MSJ: Education Ministry’s proposed online schooling will exacerbate inequalities
“[…] We are deeply concerned that the decision by the Ministry of Education to implement a programme of home-based learning conducted by teachers using an ‘online platform’ will seriously discriminate against the children whose parents are either unemployed or whose incomes are barely able to put food on the table. …
Read More »Education Ministry says brace for September restart, reveals online learning plans
Minister of Education Anthony Garcia revealed that school is unlikely to restart before September 2020, as the government adjusts to the ravages of the Covid-19 pandemic. The third school term of the 2019-20 academic year was due to start on Monday 20 April but Garcia described that as ‘virtually impossible’. …
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