Maroc - NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 18/Aug 08:40

Booklet authors want to make Trinidad and Tobago a better place

A PASSION for children, a love of country and a call for ideas from the Prime Minister led 12 women to write a booklet with the hopes of starting a conversation about the change society would like to see in the country. In 2022, The Hummingbird Medal Gold 2006 awardee Feroza Mohammed heard Prime Minister Rowley’s plea to the general public to come up with any suggestions to curb the crime situation. She reached out to several friends and the team of 12 humanitarians, educators, mothers and grandmothers contributed ideas and recommendations to transforming Trinidad and Tobago’s society. The booklet, Inspiring the Change, included advice on parenting, nutrition, health, spirituality and education for parents and the government, and listed numerous recommendations. It recommended parents spend quality time with their children, show them genuine affection and recognise they were their children’s most influential role models. It suggested the government make parent education programmes compulsory for first-time parents, that the Family Court install DNA and lie detector equipment to resolve cases in the best interest of the child and that education vacancies be filled immediately. It said there should be a differentiated curriculum catering to the abilities and talents of the child, as all students were not the same, schools should have a variety of extra-curricular activities, and delinquents students be made to perform community service and correctional activities through education and skill training. [caption id="attachment_1103207" align="alignnone" width="890"] Feroza Mohammed - Photo by Angelo Marcelle[/caption] Mohammed she said the recommendations were very important but many people may not have the tools to implement them. She recognised it would be difficult when there were financial difficulties or a parent or guardian did not have enough support. In these cases, it was the government’s job to step in. “Based on what we have written, I want to see the parliamentarians, instead of just writing and talking, to go personally to their areas and talk to the people so they could be aware of what is going on.” She said MPs should find out about the lives of their constituents, determine their needs and talents, and either help them directly or connect them to those who could help. She recognised governments always complained about a lack of financial and human resources but, she said, the people of the country should be made a priority. She said the national budget should be carefully considered with the people in mind, especially children and their education, and resources found to accommodate those needs. Mohammed said she wanted everyone to get an education, including those who were not academically inclined, so everyone had the chance to be the best in whatever profession they chose. “They are spending billions of dollars to put up one building . That could wait! Education can’t wait. “Give the children a chance. Let them decide what they want to be, give them the opportunity to become that and don’t try to stop them from pursuing their dreams. Doctor, lawyer and engineer are not the only professions. Bring back the trade schools.” [caption id="attachment_1103206" align="alignnone" width="831"] The booklet Inspiring the Change. - Photo by Angelo Marcelle[/caption] She said the government and other stakeholders should get together and get the best people to help youths, no matter the nationality, race or political affiliation. Mohammed said spirituality was also important as she believed without God there was nothing. She also stressed that parents were an example for their children so they could not to something, tell their children not to do it and expect the children to listen. In this vein, the book advocated that adult and mature programmes shown “in full view of young and adolescent children with curious and inquisitive minds” be discouraged and “strict penalties” be applied to those who broke those guidelines. While she admitted there may be resistance to that idea, she was not concerned. “Let them protest! They should be protesting now against a number of bad things in society, but they are not. We are stupidies!” Even if people did not believe in God, she believed if people were truthful, trustful, kind, respectful and humble, they could become “someone” despite the circumstances of their birth. She said those qualities, how to get along with others and humanities should be taught in schools from an early age. “Things need to change and it has to start somewhere. These recommendations are the basic things we have to do.” Yasmin Rahaman-Singh, a co-author, former principal at ASJA Girls’ College, San Fernando, and mother of two said with the high crime rate and general break down in society, a lot had to be done. With that in mind, she and the other co-authors got together to contribute to the conversation. “This conversation cannot stop. It must not stop because we see what’s happening in our beloved country. We see what’s happening in the education system. And we see what’s happening with crime, a lot of which is being committed by our youngsters. “It’s a heartfelt conversation and you have to start with the ideal. You have to start with what you want to see. We have to know where we’re going. Because if you don’t know what change you want to see then anything would be acceptable.” She said morals, values, reverence for life and spirituality were being lost and it was necessary to bring them back to every home even though they were challenging to teach. [caption id="attachment_1103205" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Feroza Mohammed co-wrote the booklet Inspiring the Change to offer a solution to deal with the ills of society. - Photo by Angelo Marcelle[/caption] She said adults were not just preparing them to sit an exam but preparing them for life – how to be a good, civil-minded citizen, parent, worker and person. Such teachings, she said, would allow children to be confident in doing the right thing and contribute meaningfully to their schools, communities and country. “One of the best recommendations we could start with is parent education. Everyone who has kids or is going to have kids, there should be mandatory parent education classes for them outlining their role, what is expected of them, how they should nurture a child and so on. “And schools must always be that beacon of light to lift kids up and show parents a different way of thinking and educating. If every citizen and every parent were to hold the same concept or philosophy, that it is achievable, as idealistic as it may appear, if we start one child at a time, one home at a time, it will happen. But we’ve got to get this dialogue out there for people to understand.” Rahaman-Singh said parents, educators, religious organisations, NGOs, corporate entities, communities and government had to work together to meet the needs of youths. They needed to be taken care of, be given guidance, feel relevant, employment opportunities and be empowered to contribute to the sustainable development of the country. “And spirituality should be an aspect – getting the child and the home to understand they must answer to a higher being. Be a good Muslim, a good Christian, a good Hindu or whatever. The values are universal.” She said it called for a shift in the way people thought. People should stand up for what was right, call for more accountability and transparency, be able to recognise taking a life was wrong, recognise bullying was wrong, and rules and guidelines were there to follow. The authors called on policy-makers to protect and enforce values to ensure the society was being built in a certain way. Rahaman-Singh said messages in songs, videos, games, books, advertisements and other entertainment were impactful and should be censored as those messages were “feeding” the younger generation. “If we make a blanket statement that we have a zero-tolerance for something, for example racism, in our country, we have to ensure anything that hits the airways or the media also supports that guiding principal or philosophy. “So if we see anyone who is speaking out about any issues that may be considered to be racist, we need to call that out. We need to censor that. We can’t say we are upholding one thing and we allow something else. There must be a parallel in what we are doing.” She pointed out that most public servants could not speak out on a topic without being sanctioned by the government, so those with the “intellectual capacity and knowledge” could not officially contribute to such a conversation. That left people without sufficient knowledge or with narrow visions to make statements. She therefore encouraged people who could influence opinions and the dialogue, including social media influencers, to speak up. “Something has to give. While we need to honour and respect the children and listen to them, we have to be firm as well and call it as it is.” A digital copy of Inspiring the Change can be downloaded at www.forabettertnt.com.   The post Booklet authors want to make Trinidad and Tobago a better place appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.