Basil Jarrett | Well done! Minister. Well done!

IT’S NOT every day that we get to see one of our leaders make a lofty promise and then deliver on it, on time and on target. So when it happens, we must rightly give praises and commendations where due. Minister of Education Fayval Williams promised last year that she had major plans to reintroduce civics as a formal subject in schools. “We will be rolling out civics as a discrete subject,” she said, noting that “…the final curriculum is now ready”. Minister Williams added that “while there is no debate that math, reading and writing are the cornerstone of a sound education, our children also need to be taught the values and virtues that will enable them to navigate their way in any circumstance they find themselves”.

PROMISE KEPT

Making good on that 2022 promise, the Ministry of Education last week reported that 584 schools across the island now offer a fully developed civics curriculum spanning grades one to six at the primary level, and grades seven to nine for high schools. These 584 schools represent approximately half of all the schools in Jamaica, and although 80 per cent of them are primary schools, I believe that this is a very good start, given that before this, civics was only taught in about 90 schools.

So why the big fuss about this subject, especially when so many of us have never taken a civics class, much less have any idea what it is? In its narrowest definition, civics is the study of the rights, duties and obligations of citizens in a society. In a broader sense, however, it is the lifelong process that creates people who are active, responsible, and useful members of their communities, whether it be their schools, towns, neighbourhoods or countries.

TEACHING INTEGRITY

Civics helps foster informed, engaged, and responsible citizens who are well aware of their pivotal role in society. In that regard, civics is much more than just an academic subject; it equips our youth with the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes they need to become useful, productive members of society. Although I have not yet seen the actual curriculum, I understand that the course will also teach integrity, ethics and honesty to a burgeoning group that so badly needs it.

I suspect that part of the reason civics was abandoned as a subject in the early 1980s, was due to the now-flawed assumption that intangibles such as leadership, integrity, ethics, civic duty, civic pride and civic responsibility would be naturally picked up somewhere along the line, and therefore, did not need to compete with other more ‘useful’ subjects for our children’s short attention span and limited classroom hours. Between the family unit, church, social and community clubs and sports teams, it was assumed that our children would learn these skills somewhere along the way. And to be honest, that assumption was not as completely out of touch with what was happening in Jamaica at the time.

Take church for example. As a youngster, church and Sunday school were as much a part of Jamaican life as soup on Saturdays and rice and peas on Sundays. Families still held on to traditional values of discipline and strong work ethics, and ensured that children pulled their weight around the house. Social and community clubs such as the Boy Scouts, Girl Guides and the cadet force thrived as powerful agents of socialisation, as did sports teams and extracurricular activities. Even the music we listened to often brought positive and uplifting messages that were not only embraced for their consciousness, but were also quite marketable for artistes. In other words, singers didn’t always have to go low, just to sell high.

LOST OUR WAY

But that was a far different time. Those socialising agents have all been heavily eroded due to a combination of Western cultural imperialism and media penetration, our own faltering standards of discipline and ethics, increased materialism and self-centredness, and just a general breakdown in our values and attitudes as a society. Thanks to social media and other technological developments, what was once taboo, risqué or just plain in bad taste, is now fashionable and in vogue as the competition for ‘likes’ and followers heats up. Even high-school sports, that once-great teacher of fair play, leadership, team spirit, winning with grace and losing with dignity, have been replaced by a win-at-all-costs mentality that sees persons travelling all the way to the motherland to recruit sporting talent, or bending and breaking eligibility rules for three precious points. As my good friend Lasceive ‘Muggy’ Graham likes to say, “We need to go back to a time when sports wasn’t just for the athletes … when even the slowest boy in the class was encouraged to run on sports day, just so that he could learn teamwork, camaraderie and the importance of not giving up.” While I was far from being the fastest or most athletic boy in my class, I had one of the biggest hearts, and out of sheer willpower and determination, there was no way I was going to let Nigel Brown make that 1991 basketball team over me. Those lessons have stayed with me to this day.

ENDURING LESSONS

Coming out of high school and growing into adulthood, those lessons translated to a sense of duty and love of country, as well as a duty of care for those less fortunate. Involvement in student leadership and active participation in the school community matured into a comprehensive appreciation of the importance of structures and functions of government, the rule of law, and the principles that underpin our democratic society. Through community service, volunteering and engagement in extracurricular activities and student government, we learnt about the critical role we play in shaping our communities and our nation. We developed career and life skills, such as the ability to critically analyse complex societal issues, develop solutions, and engage in respectful, healthy debates. When we sat and discussed our concerns about the growing apathy among boys for the well-being of the school, it taught us later on to not be similarly apathetic about the fate of our country.

These skills are invaluable in addressing the challenges and opportunities that Jamaica faces in the 21st century. But unfortunately, they are no longer as organically cultivated as in days gone by. This is why I am so happy to hear Minister Williams’ announcement last week. If these civic values can’t be grown organically, then we must deliberately, even if artificially, cultivate, curate and nurture them among our young people.

A formal civics education will promote a sense of belonging and shared responsibility for our nation’s progress. It will help our children to understand their role in society, teach critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. Most importantly, however, I hope it will also teach them to condemn dishonesty, especially when it is right in front of their faces.

The reintroduction of civics to the school curriculum is, therefore, not just a pedagogical decision; it is an investment in the future of our children and our country. I am therefore calling on all stakeholders — educators, parents, policymakers, and communities — to give bipartisan support to this initiative and to ensure its success. Bravo! Minister. Well done!

Major Basil Jarrett is a communications strategist and CEO of Artemis Consulting, a communications consulting firm specialising in crisis communications and reputation management. Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, Threads @IamBasilJarrett and linkedin.com/in/basiljarrett. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.