Blow for Jamaica’s autistic children
EXACTLY four years after it was launched to help children diagnosed with autism, the Maia Chung Autism and Disabilities Foundation (MCADF) is set to discontinue all forms of outreach activities, effective today, citing Government’s obvious disregard for those living with the mental disorder.
Blow for Jamaica’s autistic children – News – JamaicaObserver.com.
Learn MoreChung is disappointed that despite the resources her group has pumped into keeping special needs schools functional over the years, two have been closed down while at least one more is on the brink of closure.
“When these close and there is a dearth already, what do we do then? she asked, while pointing to a lack of viable solutions and intervention from the Government.
LETTER OF THE DAY – Find GSAT replacement – Letters – Jamaica Gleaner – Thursday | April 26, 2012
LETTER OF THE DAY – Find GSAT replacement – Letters – Jamaica Gleaner – Thursday | April 26, 2012.
The elitist nature of the GSAT exam is reinforced by the Ministry of Education in two ways. The top performers of the exams are sent to a limited number of high-performing high schools, and candidates with the lowest scores are also sent to a number of low-performing high schools.
Therefore, from day one the selection process is flawed and plays into the socio-economic divide that is so pervasive… Education should be a catalyst to bridge the gap in society, not widen it.
***
With regard to the GSAT not being a true measurement of a student’s ability, take the example of the subject, communication task. This exam is divided into two parts: an essay section marked out of 6, and the other, a short answer section which requires students to fill out information using a given prompt, also marked out of 6.
Determining average student
In quite a number of instances, a student can score six out of 12 in communication task, and that candidate could be seen as being an average student by virtue of scoring 50 per cent. However, that same candidate can omit to do the essay section or may have scored zero in that section.
This scenario happens more often than not and can be interpreted by a given school that the student entering their institution is an average student in that subject.
Of course, this would be far from the truth, as many of those ‘average’ students could be, and should be, classified as functional illiterates.
This article speaks of diversity, and testing techniques.
What do you think should be the hallmarks of a new system for student placement in our secondary schools?
Learn MorePortion-Sized not Super-Sized
12-year-old Marshall Reid has taken matters into his own hands and is motivating his family to eat right and exercise. Please enjoy this engaging account of how a child can show the way for so many others.
In theory, losing weight should be straightforward: eat healthier, subtract quantity, add exercise. In the real world, though, where each family member can have a different relationship with food, that equation can be far more complicated.
A Child Offers Plan on Portion Control for Dieters – NYTimes.com.
How can we empower children in the Caribbean to eat healthy and slow the alarming rates of high-blood pressure and diabetes that is literally killing our nations?
Learn MoreEnding our Relationship with Tobacco
~ Alexis Goffe, Counselling Psychologist
On February 16 2012, I attended the Jamaica Cancer Society’s Anti-Tobacco Forum that was attended by over two hundred high school students. While much information was presented, three main facts stood out for me:
1) Tobacco is a serial killer – In the 20th century, tobacco killed 100 million people worldwide. If the current trend continues, by the end of the 21st century, tobacco will kill 1 billion people worldwide. In Jamaica, reports show an increase in the number of tobacco-related chronic illness cases with Government hospitals reporting 2,255 cases in 2006 and 3,893 in 2008. Extrapolations based on data from the U.S.A estimate that of the 3,200 Jamaicans who die from cancer yearly, 960 are tobacco related.
2) Tobacco is a gold digger –The cost of a pack of cigarettes typically ranges from $550 to $700. If a Jamaican smokes one pack a day, they can easily spend over $200,000 a year. That is not an inconsequential amount of money. How many trips to the grocery store does that cover? How many gas tanks can that fill? How many university credits could be bought? Tobacco not only breaks individuals’ pockets, but it targets the country’s pocket as well. Jamaican health care institutions have spent an estimated US$4 billion since 1980 on tobacco-related illness.
Tobacco wants a high maintenance
abusive
potentially deadly relationship with us
yet 1 in 5 Jamaicans have used tobacco in their lifetime
and over 80,000 youth in Jamaica smoke cigarettes.
Why?
There are the common reasons given: peer pressure, to be cool and learned behaviour from family members. However, in my work counselling adolescents there is a major reason that requires attention; it is one of the most common ways youth have found to cope with the immense challenges of modern times. As a result, telling someone to stop smoking can be the equivalent to telling them to stop a relationship with their best friend.
This leads me to the third fact:
3) Tobacco control is a must –
- On a macro level, Jamaica signed the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in 2005 and there is a bill waiting to be passed in Parliament. This bill includes measures such as banning smoking in public places, banning the sales of tobacco to minors, stricter regulations on advertising and sales and placing graphic health warnings on packs of cigarettes. If passed, this will make Jamaica the third smoke-free CARICOM country along with Barbados and Trinidad.
- On an individual level, we must provide our children and adolescents with healthy coping strategies. Get them involved in church activities, sports, reading and artistic and creative outlets. Help our children and adolescents develop healthy relationships with peers and positive role models. We must ensure that they have people and activities that support them in their good and bad moments.
On February 16 2012, I joined the movement to help
Jamaicans say NO to tobacco
and
YES to a better and more fulfilling life.
Will you?
Alexis Goffe is a counselling psychologist at Caribbean Tots to Teens. He can be reached at alexis@caribbeantotstoteens.com
Learn MoreNew research shows black American children at HIGHEST risk of being overweight
In particular, children and teens who currently have higher obesity rates would require larger energy gap reductions [more dietary restriction and more exercise] to reach the obesity rate goal. For instance, based on their current obesity rates, white youths would need a 46-calorie reduction, on average, in their energy gap to reach the goals. But given their higher obesity rates in 2008-2010, the average reduction needed to close the energy gap for Mexican-American youths is 91 calories and, for black youths, it is 138 calories. Youths in lower-income communities also need greater reductions than their peers in higher-income areas, again due to higher rates of obesity. Additionally, an earlier study by several of the same researchers found that the problem is especially acute for teens who are already overweight.
The solutions are the same: it take time more than money, to make lifestyle changes.
Learn MoreThe authors outline several policy strategies that could help to close the daily energy gap for American youths. For instance, they point to research showing that:
- replacing all sugar-sweetened beverages in school with water and not consuming any additional sugary beverages outside of school could reduce the energy gap by 12 calories per day;
- participating in a comprehensive physical education program could eliminate 19 calories per day among children ages 9-11; and
- engaging in an after-school activity program for children in grades K-5 results in an additional 25 calories expended per day.
Parents, immunise your children
Vaccination Week in the Americas will be taking place April 21-28, 2012.
Do you have questions about regular immunizations? Do you have specific fears? Please share with us. Let us find the facts and understand together. Immunization is not personal its a matter of PUBLIC HEALTH and WELLNESS
Parents, immunise your children – Health – Jamaica Gleaner – Wednesday | April 4, 2012.
Learn More
Policy Statement—Media Education ~American Academy of Pediatrics Sept 2010
There are numerous studies that demonstrate the dangers of over exposure to media for children. In this revised document from the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) new research is brought o bear on the rapidly expanding problem of electronic media and child development.
Language delay, Obesity and Aggression are only a few of the developmental problems directly related to excessive exposure to media in childhood and adolescence.
Policy Statement—Media Education.
IMPORTANT TAKE HOME TIPS for parents include
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Toddlers under age 2 years SHOULD NOT Be using electronic media AT ALL. (special report)
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NO television, video games or electronic play (ePlay) devices should be in the child’s bedroom.
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Limit and focus time spent with electronic media: No more than 2 hours a day should be spent in ePlay; electronic entertainment for any child between 2 years and 16 years old. The TV should never be a babysitter.
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Be a good example to your children: let them see you engaging in other forms of entertainment. Make it a point for family discussion adventure.
Change involves the whole family and creative, consistent thought, but it doesn’t have to be expensive. Healthy Lifestyle choices today build a Healthy Future for tomorrow.
Learn MoreSnapshot Exam: GSAT ‘unsuitable’
GSAT ‘unsuitable’ – Lead Stories – Jamaica Gleaner – Monday | April 9, 2012.
Learn More“I don’t think that one exam should be used to determine the placement because the ministry has always encouraged us as educators that we should use different forms of assessment,” the senior educator said. Dr. Maragret Bailey.
Consultant clinical psychologist, Dr Karen Richards, (also) favoured continuous evaluation with school-based assessments (SBA) over just sitting exams, which she described as a snapshot.
Richards said it might be beneficial for the ministry to undertake a psychological assessment of the children preparing to sit GSAT to see how they cope with the stress associated with the exam. As it now stands, Richards said many of the children are under the impression that GSAT is a life-changer or a life-defining moment at the tender age of 11 when the truth is that many of them will have other opportunities in life.
“What we are saying to the children is that what you do now will determine who you are in the future. I don’t think there is anything further from the truth,” said the clinical psychologist.
GSAT JOY
Jamaica Gleaner News – GSAT JOY – Lead Stories – Friday | June 18, 2010.
But while the official results will be released today, those wishing to see the list of scholarship winners will have to wait about two weeks.
The GSAT results will determine the grade-seven placements assigned to all 48,200 candidates who sat the examination on March 25 and 26. The students were from 797 public and 207 private schools. Included in the number are 17 children who were homeschooled.
How are our home-schooled children measuring up in GSAT and beyond?
Learn MoreGSAT gloom – Ministry disappointed with Jamaica’s national averages (2008)
GSAT replaced the Common Entrance Examination in 1999. Performance in the test determines the placement of students in secondary schools.“We are not comfortable with those averages because we would like for students to do well,” Lawrence told The Gleaner last night.
The averages for all the subjects last year were not available yesterday, but the education ministry said there was an improvement in mathematics this year which had a national average in the 40s in 2007.
Looking back adds a new perspective. A national average of less than 50 in Mathematics!? We have our eyes peeled for this years analysis.
Learn More