From September, 200 Venezuelan migrant children whose parents legally registered in this country in 2019 will finally get a chance to enrol in primary school.
Minister of Education Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly confirmed yesterday that 19 Roman Catholic schools have been earmarked for migrant enrolment.
At the opening of a steelpan facility at the Russell Latapy Secondary School in Morvant, she announced: “We have identified a group of students who are ready to transition and so we are working to get them into some schools under the Catholic Education Board.”
This was not the first time such an announcement was made. Gadsby-Dolly had previously said the way had been cleared for 100 migrant children to attend primary school from last September. However, when the time came the migrant children were not allowed to enter public schools because the Immigration Division and the Office of the Attorney General still had to sort out issues with student permits.
Dr Gadsby-Dolly said this time they have already reached out to the Ministry of National Security to ensure the pupils get the permits they need for enrolment along with their immunisation cards.
“All efforts are apace to get them in,” she said.
The minister said according to the law the migrant pupils have to be placed in a school where T&T nationals are not disadvantaged. She admitted that most of the Roman Catholic schools are located in central and south Trinidad where many migrants have settled.
President of the T&T Unified Teachers Association (TTUTA) Martin Lumkin said the decision was the right one and the union has no objections but is concerned about the allocation of resources.
“We are still mindful of the impact that it can have on our educators and the education system,” he explained.
Lumkin said he was hopeful the move will benefit not only migrant children but all of T&T with proper procedures and systems in place to help the schools evolve.
President of the National Parent Teacher Association (NPTA) Walter Stuart shared a similar view. He said he hoped a proper structure would be in place for the integration process and the schools would be adequately equipped to receive the students in September.
Stuart believes the integration will propel primary school teachers to encourage their students to engage in conversational Spanish.
“One cannot overlook the fact that we are in close proximity to Venezuela and we can leverage the inclusion of these migrant Venezuelan students into our system where teachers and students can be adept in Spanish language and culture,” he said.
The coordinator of the La Romain Migrant Support group Angie Ramnarine is concerned about how teachers will continue with their syllabus while helping the migrant pupils catch up.
“I think it will be a challenge and they have to also recognise that these children are also entitled to an education and we kind of hope that they are welcomed by people who truly understand their educational needs,” she said.
Ramnarine welcomed the move but admitted it was a bit late as many Venezuelans had returned home because their children did not have access to education.
“We still have a larger problem of hundreds of children who still will not be able to access that kind of schooling because they are from undocumented parents,” she said.
Ramnarine revealed that for those children they have partnered with the United Nations Children’s Fund(UNICEF) to create child-friendly spaces.
Chief Executive Officer at the Catholic Education Board of Management(CEBM) Sharon Mangroo said they started working on the integration process before the pandemic and identified schools. Those who were willing gave a list of resources they needed.
She said they have been working with the University of the West Indies and trained teachers in Content Language Situated Learning and Translanguaging.
“The first batch was close to 98,” she said, adding that the teachers have been working to be ready for the migrant pupils.
The Caribbean Kids and Families Therapy Organization (CKFTO) trained the teachers on identifying special learning needs.