Mass absenteeism in Secondary Schools: Does the cause lie in the syllabus?

Every year at this time, we hear of the significant increase in absenteeism among Form V and Form VI students.  Various reasons have been put forward and chances are that the same phenomenon will recur next year.

One possible reason is that the solutions being proposed (e.g., sms messages to parents etc) do not address the systemic dimensions of the problem. 

Eradication of Absolute Poverty - An out-of-the box approach

1. Introduction

Most readers would agree that eradication of absolute poverty (EAP) is no easy task for various reasons. These would include inter alia factors inherent in the concerned individuals

1.1. unreliable data on who the individuals concerned are, because some of those in the EAP database do not belong to the absolute poor category

The Mauritian Attitude to Work

1. Introduction


1.1. There is considerable talk these days about the need for Mauritians to work harder so as to get the country out of the morass in which it finds itself. This article posits the view that while other factors – e.g., foreign direct investment - are important , we need to seriously re-visit our attitude to work if we aspire for a better future for the coming generations.

“Star schools”: Myth or reality?

During the last few days, one has heard a number of persons pontificating the need for “star schools”. These have even been described by some as “centres of excellence”. While listening to them one wonders whether most of them know what they are talking about or whether some have even set foot in one of them. As a former Royal College Curepipe student and teacher who has also worked as a Research Officer at the Mauritius Examinations Syndicate, I can legitimately claim that I know something about these institutions.

The Scourge is the Laureate system and not the CPE

The laureate system has become a sacred ritual practised in the shrine of the Royal College by generations, and any attempt to lay profane hands on this custom is bitterly resented.

How to make the zoning system work both at primary and secondary levels?

• Introduce regional merit list and an admission quota system

• Abolish national merit lists at primary & secondary levels

• Abolish the laureate system at HSC level

• Give the University of Mauritius the role it deserves

How to blast the myth concerning “five-star” schools?

1. INTRODUCTION

This article suggests one possible way to blast the myth concerning “five-star” schools and analyses the possible advantages of this measure. At the same time, it proposes some revolutionary changes in our educational system which are easy to implement.


2. ABOLITION OF NATIONAL MERIT LISTS

2.1. The national merit lists at CPE should be replaced say in six years’ time by two lists consisting of the first five boys and the first five girls respectively in every primary school in alphabetical order.

About Certificates and jobs

Psychologists generally conceive of learning as a relatively permanent change in behaviour. This behaviour includes both observable activity and internal processes such as thinking, attitudes and emotions.



Employers, on the other hand, base their selection decisions on candidates’ knowledge, skills and attitudes (KSAs).

Creole at school: the latest fad?

Adapted version of an article first published in L'Express on 09/03/2004




A great deal has been said about the use and teaching of Creole in Mauritian schools. [...]

What is worrying with the current debate on Creole is that it is being presented as THE solution to our main educational problem – the high rate of failure. Creole, according to some, is the panacea for all our problems. The fact is that the use of Creole in schools is not forbidden and many teachers already use it while teaching.


It is probably high time we stopped mixing politics, communalism and emotions with education for the good of all concerned.

A case for a decentralised school management model

First published in L'Express on 25/09/2007



There is unquestionable unanimity about education as a potential tool for social mobility. There is also general agreement that a dysfunctional system can also be a strong agent of social divide and exclusion.


What is lacking is a minimum consensus on what needs to be done to ensure that objectives are achieved.

Successful public – private partnership

First published in L'Express on 11/07/2006



Introduction

Soon after the government formulated its vision of transforming the country into a cyber island with three main dimensions, various teams emerged to realize this vision. One such team, the Implementation Working Group (IWG) emanated from the e-education taskforce headed by the Minister of Education (MOE). The IWG consists of ministry representatives (education, training, IT, etc), educational institutions (including the University of Mauritius) as well as private sector organizations.

Education for the gifted or for the elite?

First published in L'Express on 15/03/2005


Experts generally agree that there is in every population a small percentage of gifted children (des surdoués) and that they deserve special treatment in terms of educational challenges if their talents are not to go waste or be misdirected. It is sometimes noted that gifted children who are not sufficiently challenged simply get bored and stop paying attention or else simply misbehave.