Minister of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation, Ronald Jones, as he raised his glass in a toast to former tutor at Erdiston Teachers’ Training College, Mrs. Cecelia Rock, during her retirement celebration at the Crane Resort.
‘TEACH TO CHANGE LIVES’
Thu, 07/07/2016 - 12:00am
Successful teachers are the ones who work hard to ensure that they make a difference in their students’ lives.
Minister of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation, Ronald Jones, acknowledged the above as he spoke during the Erdiston Teachers’ Training College’s Retirement Celebration held for former tutor, Mrs. Cecelia Rock, at the Crane Resort on Tuesday afternoon.
“We have to reflect every day, am I making a difference in the lives of these people that I work with? Am I truly doing something that will cause them to also want to change the world, as I am seeking to change the world with them? Now if every day teaching looks like the day before, then we know we didn’t achieve anything. You did not change the world, you only stopped the world for one moment,” the Minister asserted.
Turning his attention to Mrs. Rock, Jones stated, “I’ve been told that she has been involved in education for 42 years and around seven months, a few days and
a few hours and to be involved in a profession such as education for that length of time is truly remarkable.
“At the end of the day, to spend this long has to come from the recognition that you are there to change the world and that you change the world not by any major leaps …
but that you change it incrementally, one day, one student at a time and then you find that you get this massive bulk of trained, competent and skilled and disciplined
individuals. That is all we as teachers we can really do,” Jones further remarked.
Speaking to Rock’s dedication and commitment to her profession, Jones noted that he has copious records on every single teacher in the system and Rock’s record speaks for itself.
“We have not seen any indication that you were not a good teacher and that you were not dedicated to your tasks and I applaud that commitment and that dedication. There are not a whole (lot) of people who can pass through the system without having some little smudge on their record,” he said.
The Minister, on behalf of the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation, then wished Cecelia Rock the very best on her retirement. (RSM)