Education official lauds International Business Week School Symposium

The International Business Week School Symposium hosted by the Barbados International Business Association (BIBA) this week, has been described as a timely initiative which can aid students in planning their lives beyond the classroom.

Yvette Estwick, Education Officer in the Ministry of Education, Technological and Vocational Training acknowledged the value of such a symposium, during a break from the event held at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre on Tuesday. Speaking with The Barbados Advocate, Estwick also suggested that the Education Ministry is always happy to partner with the private sector, in pushing events that help students make the important transition from school to the working environment.

“Seminars such as these help us to build a partnership with the private sector and [in this case] that partnership would highlight to the students, some of the skills and the attitudes and the certifications, as well as the salaries that are available in the careers of the present and those of the future,” Estwick commented.

“What came out this morning, is that students had little knowledge about the jobs and some of the activities that take place in the international business sector. So therefore, a seminar such as this, where they get to interact with the partners, interact with persons whose careers span various areas in the international business sector, this should inform how they pursue their post-secondary education and it would also inform the areas that they need to be certified in,” she added.

“One of the most interactive sessions was that of the social media manager, since students were not aware of the avenues to become a social media manager. They were not aware that you can take a City and Guilds certification, but that information came to the students. So it is very important that our partners share with the Ministry in guiding the students in the pathway to the jobs of the future,” the educator officer further remarked.

During the Symposium, students attending various secondary schools heard from various presenters who are making a living in the international business sector, how they could go about obtaining various qualifications for jobs in the sector, as well as the potential earnings available, once successful in landing a job of interest in the sector. (RSM)