Turnaround at Parkinson Memorial
A secondary school which has received negative publicity based on students’ behaviour in the past, is beginning to see a reduction in the occurrence of fights and violence taking place among students.
This is according to principal Ian Holder, who was addressing the Parkinson Memorial School’s Speech Day and Prize Giving Ceremony yesterday at the Pine, St Michael institution.
He reported to parents and specially invited guests, including members of the Board of Management, that since his appointment as principal in May last year, there has been a fall-off in internal conflict at the institution.
He said that this reduction can be attributed to the fact that the school’s leadership has strengthened its focus on teaching students about God and the spiritual aspect of life.
Additionally, he said general assembly is also being held more often, so that all students can be exposed to influential and impactful programmes.
Holder highlighted that fights have not been taking place at the end of terms, which has also been a problem for the school in the past.
Following the ceremony, the principal told The Barbados Advocate that efforts are being made to form links
between students and community groups – mainly, the Pinelands Creative Workshop.
“The most important thing in transferring social skills to students is letting them know that you care. And one of the things that I have worked on since I have been here, is to give the students that understanding that the teachers are here to care for them.
“Our guidance counsellor has also been doing a tremendous job in having our students counselled in the areas of conflict resolution and anger management. I think that that change of culture within the school has been having an impact on students’ behaviour,” he said.
Holder told the gathering that while the school has been excelling in all areas, the management is now ready to take it to another level.
He explained that while educational programmes at the institution are in the process of being restructured, the Industrial Arts programme which has not been effectively running for some time is expected to be fully back on stream from September.
“We are improving our skill aspects of the curriculum to give the students more hands-on opportunities where they can learn the skills.
“I have some wonderful and qualified teachers working with me and we are trying our best to produce the best students who will be making their way into society,” Holder said.
At the prize giving ceremony, students who excelled in all aspects of the school were praised and rewarded for their dedication and commitment. The Best Overall Student was Tanneil Burnett. (AH)