LETTER: EDUCATION CONFUSION: A REVOLUTION THAT DID NOT REVOLVE For 13-plus years, Prime Minister Ralph E. Gonsalves and his Unity Labour Party (ULP) government have been chest-beating about the Education Revolution. They took the OECS education mandate and sold it to the Vincentian community as if it was their idea and creation. This behaviour is just another of Gonsalves sacred practice: lying. What does the Unity Labour Party Education Revolution consist of? 1. Increase the number of scholarships offered as island scholarships. 2. A renegotiation of the number of scholarship Vincentians receive from Cuba, Taiwan, etc. 3. The lowering of the Common Entrance grade, to reflect better grades, 4. The negotiation and distribution of laptop computers to school children. 5. The technical aspect to the revolution: the OECS education mandate. Everyone knows, to change or to improve on a persons idea and or creation is not revolutionary, it is expected that any responsible administrator, in the process of managing that which they have charge over; will make adjustment to programs, policies, management, etc. as is needed. This is to be done to ensure that the institution or program meets its desired goals and objectives in the changing environment. But the ULP government and Ralph E. Gonsalves missed the boat on this very important issue. It will be important to note that the only thing that could have been considered revolutionary in the Education Revolution was ignored or missed by Gonsalves and his government: which was the active and consistent pursuit of the accreditation, of at least the associates degree that is offered by the St Vincent and the Grenadines Community College; or by extension to have the only post secondary education institution on the island have some form of accreditation. It is important to note that accreditation is not a mystery that must be solved. But it is a series of measurable educational standards that are known and must be met by the institution seeking to be accredited. When a school is seeking accreditation from an accrediting institution, the minimum expected standards that must be attained are outlined in the accrediting institutions mandate. There are periodic reviews to monitor the progress and there are precise recommendations that are made by the reviewing officers as to what needs to be done. We must know that receiving accreditation is only half of the battle; the true struggle is to ensuring that the said accreditation is not revoked. Such accreditations will be revoked if the accredited institution falls below the require standards. It is important to note that, more than anything else, becoming accredited is an expensive process and often times an institution is unable to meet its general operational expenses and pursue accreditation at full pace. As a result, accreditation becomes a long term goal for the institution to work on. Apart from becoming fully accredited, an institution can negotiate what I call, for a lack of a better adjective, a piggy back accreditation, whereby an unaccredited education institution negotiates to use the accreditation of an accredited institution to validate their degree programs. The SVG Community College could have done this. A piggy back accreditation could have ensuring that, in this paper oriented world, the students hard work is not wasted. At the least, their associates degree would have been recognized and carried the value of the work the student put in and the value of the accredited institution. Because it is a costly process to bring an institution up to accreditation standard and maintaining such, it would be wise for the accreditation board at the St Vincent and the Grenadines Community College to consider negotiating a piggy back accreditation with one of the accredited institutions in the Diaspora. Have it not been for Mr Eustaces enquiry and public statement, the students at the school would have been investing their hard earn monies and time to obtain a degree they will not be able to use. Mr Eustaces simple remark has the entire government running about like headless chickens; casting blame, etc.; trying to justify their lack of action. What I would like to know about the St Vincent and the Grenadines Community College accreditation committee or board is: 1. Which accrediting body did the community college petition for their accreditation? 2. When did the community college make such petition to the accrediting body? 3. How far along the process has the school reached? 4. What are the major obstacles in obtaining the accreditation the college faces? 5. What is the tentative accreditation year. 6. Does the community college have any plans to implement a piggy back accreditation system to ensure the students dont waste their time and money pursuing a first degree that has no value? Allan H. F. Palmer
Posted on: Wed, 05 Nov 2014 12:45:02 +0000
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