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A free online training is equipping teachers across the Caribbean with the skills, tools and methods to improve distance learning for their learners.

The COVID-19 pandemic and consequent disruptions to schools continues to threaten decades of progress towards quality education — SDG 4 — in the Caribbean. Data suggests that nearly 7 million students in 23 countries and 91,000 teachers have been affected by school closures. 

As schools across the region closed, teachers had to adapt quickly to blended and distance learning modalities. This was particularly challenging for those in regions with poor or no connectivity and limited access to devices. Even in contexts with adequate infrastructure and connectivity, many teaching professionals lacked the training and ICT skills to design and facilitate quality learning from afar.  

In January this year, in response to the significant needs of the education system in the region, UNESCO, Blackboard and the Caribbean Centre for Educational Planning (CCEP) at the University of the West Indies teamed up to launch the . With funding from Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), this year-long project aims to strengthen the capacities of teachers and school leaders on digital skills and blended learning solutions. The goal is to train 10,000 teachers in the use of online education tools, resources and platforms. 

Building on a Global Education Coalition , in which a cohort of teachers underwent training in online course development, these certified “master trainers” are now helping colleagues across the region learn how to plan, design, develop, review and revise online course materials to improve distance learning for pupils. With regular mentorship from the Blackboard Academy, 40 master trainers are facilitating assignments and group discussions on topics such as ‘Using video to teach’, ‘Addressing the needs of diverse learners’, and ‘Personalised learning in a virtual classroom’. Participants attend one live session per week with the rest of the coursework done through self-study and, upon completion of the four-week course and assessments, receive a certification.  

More than 2,000 teachers from five Caribbean countries — Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Dominica, St. Lucia, St. Maarten — have already completed the course and are now equipped with basic skills in computers, online tools and methods, and knowledge of blended learning strategies.

Haynese Carlyle, a primary school teacher in rural Jamaica, was among the first cohort. When schools closed last year, poor internet access and lack of means to communicate with her students made it challenging to deliver the curriculum as planned.  Carlyle said that she also found the traditional methods she used in the classroom, such as games and signing, to be less effective online. However, through the course, which she completed at her own pace, Carlyle learned how YouTube could be used as a teaching tool and how a combination of synchronous and asynchronous approaches could benefit her students.  

Ensuring that students with learning difficulties were included and engaged - something made more difficult by the lack of visual cues and in-person interaction - had been another key concern for Carlyle as she moved her lessons online. But she has now “learned methods on how to integrate inclusive teaching into the online environment [and] make personal videos to motivate [students].” 

Similarly, Tinuke Ola-Peters, a language teacher from Trinidad and Tobago, was looking for ways to support her students with various types of learning needs. Having completed the training, she better understands how to use specific fonts and sizes, images, and audios to present new vocabulary and make the lessons inclusive. Learning how to use feedback features to communicate with students has also helped ease her workload, . 

Throughout the various training cohorts, UNESCO and Blackboard together with the Caribbean Centre for Educational Planning at the University of the West Indies have explored how best to support teachers in completing assignments while juggling the demands of their busy day jobs. A Caribbean Reference Group has also been set up, in collaboration with the International Task Force on Teachers for Education 2030, to ensure effective implementation of the teacher training initiative across the region. Representing Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, the British Virgin Islands, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Belize, members of the group include Ministry of Education officials, professionals from teacher training institutions, and certified master trainers, among others.  

Meanwhile, in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, new partnerships are seeking to mitigate the additional disruptions to schools caused by the volcanic eruptions in April this year. UNESCO is working with the country’s Ministry of Education and Microsoft to provide training to teachers on strategies for inclusive learning in online education. A separate collaboration between the UN agency, the Ministry and  — an organization that distributes open source apps to children to help them learn to read — is supporting primary and secondary school students in the recovery of learning. Having requested support from the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States in procuring devices for students and education officers, this project has already delivered orientation sessions to teaching staff on the use of these devices for lessons.     

As intermittent lockdowns and school closures continue, distance learning remains key to reaching millions of children in the Caribbean region and ensuring their right to education. It also looks set to play a greater role in the future of education in emergencies.