Minister Rabain Updates On Education Reform

“I rise today to update this Honourable House and the listening public on the exciting work that is progressing to transform public education in Bermuda,” Minister of Education Diallo Rabain said in the House of Assembly today [Feb 3].

The Minister said, “Let me begin with the work currently underway to bring the concept of Parish Primary Schools to life. Our fundamental belief remains steadfast; Parish Primary Schools will create learning hubs in each parish that mobilize the strengths and assets of our communities in support of our schools and our young people.

“Transforming our Senior Schools will take us no less than four years from the moment we begin working at a site. Whilst delivering our first year of Signature Learning Programmes, educators are now developing what is required for S2 and S3. Teams of teachers at both Signature Senior Schools are focused on redesigning the first two disciplines in the core curriculum: Mathematics and Science.

“Additionally, they will look at scaling a new model of advisory which caters to the increasingly important area of social emotional learning, all whilst continuing to grow their competence and confidence in these new models of teaching, learning and schooling.”

The Minister’s full statement follows below:

Mr. Speaker,

I rise today to update this Honourable House and the listening public on the exciting work that is progressing to transform public education in Bermuda.

Mr. Speaker,

Dedicated teams of educators, businesses and community partners, parents and young people are working on behalf of our country to ensure that each and every child in Bermuda succeeds in an education worth having. In my statement today, I will highlight progress being made in key areas of our reform agenda and provide clarity for members and the listening public about what they can expect to see, hear and experience next.

Mr. Speaker,

Let me begin with the work currently underway to bring the concept of Parish Primary Schools to life. Our fundamental belief remains steadfast; Parish Primary Schools will create learning hubs in each parish that mobilize the strengths and assets of our communities in support of our schools and our young people.

We have consistently made statements about what the community can expect from the transformation we are undergoing. Through research of best practice globally and consultation with communities across the island, we have developed a set of ten principles that guide our work and that will feature in each Parish Primary School as they come online.

Features that focus on putting learning, especially real world learning at the centre of everything we do. Features that position Parish schools as the hub of their communities, schools that have meaningful partnerships with families and are places of collaboration and learning for all in the community. Ultimately, Parish primary schools are focused on outcomes of equity, cultural connection locally and globally. We are looking at creating Schools that build legacies for years to come.

But what does this really mean?

Mr. Speaker,

On Tuesday night, I had the pleasure of standing beside Mrs. Enid Furbert-Jacobs, Principal of Purvis Primary and co-lead of the Purvis Primary School Transformation Team as she described to members of the Warwick community what they could expect to be different for students entering P1 and P7 at Purvis Primary School in September of this year.

Mr. Speaker,

Principal Furbert-Jacobs eloquently brought to life what “culturally and globally connected” means to the Warwick Parish community. It will come as no surprise that, in today’s classrooms, our teachers encounter students who come from a variety of cultural and linguistic backgrounds. In response to the needs of these diverse learners in our island home, and to turn what might be perceived as cultural and linguistic barriers into opportunities and strengths, students entering P1 in the Purvis Primary School model will have access to dual language learning.

Mr. Speaker,

Principal Furbert-Jacobs continued to elaborate on what “passion-led and real world learning” will mean at the Purvis Primary School. The ColLABoratory is a design and technology enabled makerspace where students are afforded greater agency over their learning. We are creating a 21st century learning environment where our learners are able to undertake investigations in areas of their own interest, as well as put their highly sought after STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering and Math] based mindsets and skills to work as they attempt to solve real world problems.

Mr. Speaker,

Principal Furbert-Jacobs continued to help us understand what being the “Hub of the community” really means to the Warwick Parish. Beginning in September 2023, Purvis Primary School will introduce the Cedar Room Cafe. The Cedar Room Cafe will be a vibrant community space, an opportunity for chat and chews with parents and community members, and a place for those accessing the School’s wraparound services. These wraparound services will integrate services and resources that focus on the whole child and family. The Cedar Room Cafe will also be a learning space, a place for students to be involved in running a cafe service.

Students will learn about hospitality, develop entrepreneurial skills and gain foundational experiences to help them successfully transition into the Hospitality and Tourism Signature Learning Programme in Senior School, for those who choose that particular track.

Mr. Speaker,

These are but a few examples of the exciting work that we continue to test to advance our commitment to Parish Primary Schools. Examples that can be matched by the innovative and impactful work underway at the Parish Primary School for Hamilton Parish, scheduled to open in September 2023 on the Francis Patton Primary site. I look forward to being able to share more details about that site in future statements in this House.

Mr. Speaker,

In my last statement regarding Education Reform in this House in September 2022, I remarked on the exciting new chapter in learning for our country. As students had just entered S1 at the beginning of this school year to embark on their journey in Signature Learning Programmes, we are pleased to see them embracing this opportunity.

Mr. Speaker,

Students at CedarBridge Academy are engaged in STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering and Math] and Trades and Professions Signature Learning Programmes. Students at the Berkeley Institute are engaged in Health and Social Care, and Financial and Insurance Services Signature Learning Programmes. Each of these signatures have seen our students experience learning that is more personalised, flexible, relevant, future-focused, inspiring, and authentically Bermudian than ever before. Learning that, despite the inevitable teething problems, shows promise in putting us on the pathway toward achieving our long term goal of opening up further study and career opportunities in priority sectors of Bermuda’s economy and society.

Mr. Speaker,

Transforming our Senior Schools will take us no less than four years from the moment we begin working at a site. Whilst delivering our first year of Signature Learning Programmes, educators are now developing what is required for S2 and S3. Teams of teachers at both Signature Senior Schools are focused on redesigning the first two disciplines in the core curriculum: Mathematics and Science. Additionally, they will look at scaling a new model of advisory which caters to the increasingly important area of social emotional learning, all whilst continuing to grow their competence and confidence in these new models of teaching, learning and schooling.

Mr. Speaker,

We have much to celebrate. One area I would like to highlight is the learning partnerships we have developed within the business industry, and with cultural and scientific partners across the island. Businesses and community organisations, large or small, play a crucial role in supporting senior schools and their students to succeed. Signature Learning Partnerships help senior schools bring to life the vision for learning and connect what happens in the classroom with the real-world.

Mr. Speaker,

Two specific learning partnerships are worthy of note. The first is with the Bermuda Zoological Society [BZS]. This partnership continues to strengthen with representatives from BZS engaged in the design, development and, now, the delivery of courses within the STEM Signature Learning Programme at CedarBridge Academy. Senior School students have the opportunity to learn from the best and brightest scientists in this region, applying knowledge in real world learning experiences such as field investigations on site at the Aquarium.

Mr. Speaker,

Our Learning Partnerships also support our education workforce. Next week, more than ten teachers from both Senior Schools and all four Middle Schools who are currently delivering or have the potential to deliver learning within the Financial & Insurance Services Signature Learning Programme, will be engaged in high quality professional learning to build their capability in insurance and international business practices in Bermuda. This industry credentialed course is fully sponsored by ABIC [Association of Bermuda International Companies] and will ensure our teachers are at the cutting edge of developments in these crucial industries. Through the success of this partnership, teachers will be better equipped to provide instruction that prepares our students to be able to compete on a global level.

Mr. Speaker,

I am sure that you, the members of this House and the listening public will join me in thanking both BZS and ABIC and all of the learning partners that are actively investing in the future of our country, and our children.

Mr. Speaker,

Whilst rightly beginning with what we have to celebrate, it would be misleading to say that we had everything one hundred per cent right as we moved into our first year of implementation. As the Italian philosopher Voltaire is commonly credited with saying, “we must not let perfect be the enemy of the good” . This philosophy has significant merit in education systems globally. The highest performing systems that nurture their students to achieve outstanding life and learning outcomes are intentionally designed as systems that learn as they develop.

Mr. Speaker,

This is what we are doing. We are learning in order to improve at each and every step of this phased and staged transformation process, which we knew, right from the beginning, would take us several years to complete. We will always look at what we are doing to improve our processes, how we can increase our efforts, and, where possible, accelerate the work. With this approach to sustainable change in mind, we are currently utilizing everything we have learnt to date to develop a revised trajectory to the opening of all Parish and Signature Schools and the phasing out of Middle Schools. Essentially, the plan to complete the transformation of the public school system that our Bermuda public has asked for.

Mr. Speaker,

This task involves clearly identifying the necessary trajectories to develop what happens inside the buildings, the development of the buildings themselves and the movement of students and staff. This is a complex undertaking that is being led by the Education Reform Unit and will be completed in the coming weeks. Once in place, we will be able to provide parents, teachers, students and the wider community with more details on future Parish Primary Schools, when new Signature Schools will open, and when some of our existing Primary Schools will close and our Middle Schools phased out.

Mr. Speaker,

As announced in November 2022, The Education Reform Unit, which resides in the Ministry of Education, reporting to the Office of the Minister of Education, has been established. A diverse group of experienced and skilled professionals from within and beyond education, have joined the team to focus on our ambitious but critical agenda.

Mr. Speaker,

As the Premier and I have stated before, the work of transforming outcomes for our children is not only unprecedented in education circles in Bermuda, but this level of whole system change is unprecedented in the public service in Bermuda.

That is why the Education Reform Unit will continue to be supported by our globally recognised education and change partners, Innovation Unit. The contract extension granted to Innovation Unit, a not-for-profit charity, appropriately reflects the work they are undertaking to support this nationally significant work.

Mr. Speaker,

Anyone involved in the process will tell you that this change has been built by us, for us, through engagement with teachers, students, parents, and business and community leaders. This Government looks forward to continuing the work to reform our Public School System, important work that will create the necessary opportunities for our children to follow their passions and interests, build on their talents and capabilities, and achieve their careers and further aspirations.

Mr. Speaker,

You will continue to hear me say in this very House and in any other forum that I can, Bermuda’s children are Bermuda’s future. We have committed to learning from our past in order to identify the best way to move forward in the best interest of our children.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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