The Intersection of Gender, Culture and Education: Jamaica: The Next 50 Years!

                                                                  Unwelcome Visitor                                                                           © 2014 The day started the night before Runny nose, watery eyes, sneezing Burning throat, congested nasal passages Painful swallowing Having the chills It was the night before Listless! Sweaty and drenched clothes Tossing and turning throughout most of the night Excess mucus Red, swollen eyes It was the night that would never end Laboured breathing Pain and aches-everywhere Coughing-Incessantly It is the morning after the night before. By Wayne Campbell

There are more than seven billion people living on planet Earth.   Our planet is at a critical juncture. As the global population increases so too are the environmental challenges associated with so many people living in a finite area. Each year the world pauses on April 22 to commemorate Earth Day. The global theme for Earth Day 2014 is “Green Cities”. With more than half of the world’s population living in cities, it is becoming more and more challenging to refer to our cities as ‘green’. Our cities are increasingly becoming large areas of concrete as governments struggle to provide affordable housing for their citizens. The denigration of the environment is a direct result of urbanization and population increase. This is having a negative effect on all of us, rich and poor, Christians and atheists, black and white. This negative impact is highlighted in Jamaica especially in the parishes of Kingston and St. Andrew where there are hardly any green space available where our children,

"And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted. And he said saith unto them, Be not afraid. Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified, He is RISEN, he is NOT here: behold the place where they laid him". St. Mark 16 verses 5&6. Today is Resurrection Sunday!

"When Jesus, therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head and gave up the ghost". St. John 19 verse 30. Wishing for all a holy and reflective Easter!

Each year during this period (March to April) Jamaica experiences a water shortage. It has now become common place, especially in Kingston and its environs, to see scores of Jamaicans walking in search of water daily as the taps run dry or as water restrictions by the National Water Commission (NWC) intensifies. Our public institutions, in particularly our schools have been severely hampered and in some instances some schools have had to dismiss early due to the lack of water on their campuses. The Mona Reservoir was opened in the 1940,s, while the Hermitage Dam was opened in 1927. Both facilities were built to provide a reserve water supply for the corporate area of Kingston and St. Andrew. However, at the time those catchment areas were built they were able to adequately provide water for the population.   Since 1943, we have seen an explosion in the growth of the population not only for those two parishes but for Jamaica on a whole. According to the Statistical Institute of Jamai

In a society where there is an undeniable association between the construction of masculinity and the smoking of marijuana the intention of the Jamaican government to decriminalize marijuana might just go up in smoke. In jurisdictions where decriminalization has occurred the recreational user of marijuana does not face prosecution for possessing or for using small amounts of the drug. Therefore, it would be illegal to trade, sell, or possess large quantities of the drug. As a result the resources of the state and law enforcement are usually shifted and used to target the suppliers and dealers of the drug. There is a marked difference between legalization of marijuana-which is the route of both Uruguay and the State of Colorado in the United States of America-decriminalization of the drug. Colorado is the first state in the US to legalize the cultivation, sale and recreational usage of marijuana. Consequently individuals over the age of 21 are allowed to have up to an ounce of marijua

Those of us who have had the privilege of attending an educational institution operated by nuns know without a shadow of doubt that they are dedicated, hard working and sticklers for discipline. It is indeed a sad day in Jamaica to find out that the Alpha Boys Home which has served both as a home and school for thousands of boys will cease its residential care facilities in June of 2014.   The Alpha Boys Home started in 1891 with sixteen boys and has turned out many distinguished Jamaicans including some of Jamaica’s finest musicians. The school was founded by the religious order The Sisters of Mercy and has had a proud and illustrious record over the years. The Sisters of Mercy was founded in 1831 by Catherine Elizabeth Mc Auley, an Irish nun who used her inheritance to build a home for homeless women and children and provide for them care and an education. Two reasons were given by The Sisters of Mercy for the closure of the residential care facilities. One was the failure of human

Have you ever asked yourself what are the core values of the Jamaican society? Can you identify those principles which have guided us a nation throughout the good and bad moments within our history? Those who are honest will admit it is rather challenging to identify such core values. However, we first need to ask ourselves what are core values? Core values are those principles and ideals which help make up the identity and culture of a society. Since our political independence in 1962 our sense of identity as a people have been interrogated and deconstructed repeatedly and now we are at crossroad regarding our cultural identify as a society. Indeed many factors contribute to a society’s core values. Our proximity to North America and the invasion of subscriber television popularly known as cable TV have greatly contributed to a new spectrum of core values in the Jamaican society. In a socialist society, for example, the core values surround equality for all, equality in terms of hous

Just imagine if you had a loved one on Malaysian Airlines flight M370 which vanished into thin air on the March 8, 2014. Imagine for a moment the pain you would have experienced not knowing what had happened to your loved one. The emotional toll on the families has been heart rending as seen from footage on the television.   The process of grieving has been around ever since the creation of mankind. Humans tend to make strong bonds of affection or attachment with others. When these bonds are broken, as in death or separation, a strong emotional reaction occurs, which is defined as grief. Grieving can occur at anytime throughout an individual’s lifespan. Grief counselling refers to a specific form of therapy or a focus in general counselling with the goal of helping the individual grieve, and address personal loss in a healthy manner. The purpose of grief counselling is to assist the individual work through the feelings, thoughts and memories associated with the loss of a loved one. Gri

The decision by the Ministry of Education to stop offering the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examination has turned out to be both ill-advised and foolhardy. At the time the decision was taken the education ministry said the SSC examinations had lost its relevance in the society. The Ministry of Education announced then that a more relevant high school diploma would replace the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examinations. The SSC Examination was introduced in the 1970,s and served as an exit exam for many students after their five year stint at the secondary level. Many years have passed since the education ministry announced plans for a more relevant replacement exam and we are still waiting to see the rolling out of the high school diploma replacement examination. Consequently, thousands of students have graduated from high schools across Jamaica without any form of certification. The fact is the SSC examination was very much relevant. A student with a pass at range 4