At the very start, the aim of the enhancement programme was meant to provide an alternative to private tuition by giving pupils activities in view of developing creative and critical thinking, study skills, movement education … all these activities were to cater for the overall development of the child by putting the child at the centre of learning.

The Programme at its inception was to bring a paradigm shift from a traditional method to a more learner centred one with emphasis on inclusive education whereby slow learners are given an additional push to prevent them from continually lagging behind.

Pupils are different for different reasons and, in the classroom, the teacher more often cannot cater for these differences. As our main target is to reduce failures at CPE from the current 30 %, this programme was meant to provide learning opportunities to a diverse range of learners through a diversity of learning outcomes.

However, the programme presented to the public has nothing to do with the above. The packaging is colourful but it contains no strategies to stop those with learning difficulties from lagging behind. It, therefore, defeats the ultimate aim of reducing failures.

The main argument against private tuition is that teachers were not making use of a personalized approach they were teaching the whole class in private tuition what they did in class. In the enhancement programme, no individual educational programme is being proposed to slow learners. So where is the difference?

The programme is only an eye-wash and nothing in it gives us the impression that we are moving towards a new approach in view of reducing failures. The cosmetic nature of this programme will do much harm to the majority of slow learners as there is a summative final CPE exam at the end of primary schooling.

These will now be penalized twice: during normal classroom day time and during enhancement programme.

We have to revisit the whole system, not in a piecemeal manner. Standard 4 is normally the beginning of the second cycle in Mauritius like it is in France and in many other countries it is a crucial year in terms of logical thinking. Normally, we to refer STD 4 as the beginning of upper primary. If we miss this year, it is diffi cult to catch up later.

We are making a special request to the ministry not to implement this programme and not to use our children as guinea pigs. We may end up with an increase in failures at CPE. Many pupils who have difficulty to coping with the pace of learning going on in the classroom need coaching and help with their homework. Tuition is a means for these children to catch up and thus develop self-esteem.

PARENTS KNOW THAT!

Suttyhudeo Tengur,
President Government Hindu Teachers Union (GHTU)

(Extract from ‘Educational Reform : Are we getting it right’?)
L’express Weekly  - Friday 19 February