Literacy software training for various Kingston schools

SEVEN unstable communities across Jamaica will benefit from a six-year United Kingdom (UK)/Jamaica Violence Prevention Partnership Program (VPPP). The Auditory, Reading, Response, Oral and Writing (ARROW) software training is the first activity under the program that is now being actively implemented.

The opening ceremony took place on October 30 at Immaculate Conception High School in St Andrew.

UK Government grants of £15 million will be used to support the programme.

Sharon Weber, governance adviser at the UK Department for International Development, said expanding the program will ensure students with learning difficulties can access this help.

“The results that will influence engagement will be considered in the future expansion of the program. Depending on how well you do and how you can achieve the desired results, we will scale up and expand to more schools. This is just the beginning and over the next six years we will look to expand our involvement with schools,” she said.

The ARROW program has been trialled at several secondary schools.

These include Haile Selassie High, Norman Manley High, Kingston High, Holy Trinity High, Spot Valley High and Grange Hill High, located in Special Operations Zones (ZOSOs) across the island.

“In the violence prevention partnership, even as we look at violence, we also look at some of the underlying causes. That is why Britain has decided to start in the schools and spread it into the communities, because that is where the difference will be made. The intention is that, just as we engaged ARROW, the VPPP will also engage civil society groups so that they can help deliver results more effectively,” Weber added.

Director of the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information’s Schools Safety and Security Unit, Richard Troupe, said the ministry will benefit from a $56 million grant in the first seven months for its role in the violence prevention program .

“This program is a commitment to ensure that we give all of our country’s children the opportunity to take advantage of all the educational opportunities available to them,” he stressed.

The ARROW program was developed by British-based physician Dr. Colin Lane.

It is based on learning through self-voice techniques, as well as other programs involving reading, spelling, dictation, speech and listening skills.

These have been proven to produce significant results in children and adults across the spectrum who have learning difficulties.