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January 2020 Preston Red Thread An electronic journal for all those on the Left in the greater Preston area. #10 – January 2020 Edited by: Mick Mulcahy, Dave Savage & Michael McKrell “The task of the media in a democracy is not to ease the path of those who govern, but to make life difficult for them by constant vigilance as to how they exercise the power they only hold in trust from the people.” Editorial Our tenth issue sees a clear-eyed and sober assessment of the General Election result from Alan Dent. Chris Lomax returns with more Radical Songs. We have a look back at the tumultuous events of 1649 and Michael McKrell reflects on the Cuban education system. The editors hold a wide range of party political affiliations and all are or were trade unionists representing members in the greater Preston area. The project is not overseen, directed or funded by any political party or trade union. All decisions are made collectively by the editors. Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect those of the editors. If you want to get involved, by sending us an article or review, please let me know – [email protected] Cuba 60 – Reflections on the Cuban Education System ‘People can only be free if they are truly educated’. (José Martí) ‘Revolution and education are the same thing’. (Fidel Castro) Many on the Left understand that school and society are closely linked; that education helps reproduce the class structure of an economy and society from one generation to the next - complex and contradictory as this process may be - depending on an array of internal and external forces at work at any given moment in history. So it should come as no surprise that the system of education in Cuba differs markedly from that of the UK. In December 2016 – a few weeks after the death of Fidel Castro - I was privileged to visit a secondary school in the Cuban province of Artemisia as part of a solidarity Brigade made up of trades unionists and activists from the UK and several Scandinavian countries. The day of the visit coincided with El Dia del Educador (or el Dia del Maestro - Teachers’ Day) which is celebrated annually on 22nd December. During our visit the students presented a concert of music, dance and drama for the teachers and their fellow students. At the end of performance there was a speech from the headteacher extolling the continuing importance of education for Cuba and its citizens. After the speeches the teachers who worked at the school – as well as those of us visitors who worked in education – were called up on to stage. As our names was called out each of us in turn was greeted by rhythmic applause and presented with flowers. It was a very moving occasion and one that prompted me to reflect on the achievements of the Cuban people in the field of education. What was remarkable about that visit, aside from the joyousness of the festivities was that there was genuine warmth trust and affection between students and teachers. It was evident that teachers were held in high esteem and that students enjoyed a disciplined yet positive leaning environment to which they made a positive contribution, notwithstanding the limited resources available. Textbooks have to be shared and we were shown the book depository where students borrow text books and then return them after lessons. We were able speak to the students about what their experience of school was like and what they hoped to achieve. This turned out to be very revealing about some of the challenges facing Cuba at present; a theme I shall address later. ‘We Shall Read – We Shall Conquer’ The celebration of Teachers’ Day has its roots on the early stages of the Cuban Revolution and in particular the first Literacy campaign. Trained as teachers and equipped with a uniform, blanket, gas-lantern, hammock and two textbooks - Vamos a Leer (We Shall Read) and Vamos a Vencer (We Shall Conquer) - 251,000 young people were sent out to teach basic literacy to over a million illiterate peasant workers between1st January and 22nd December 1961. ‘You will teach and you will learn’ Fidel Castro told the volunteers, most of whom were from the urban centres and knew little of the realities of life on the land. By the end of the almost year-long campaign, 75% of those million or so rural workers had achieved rudimentary literacy skills, laying the foundation for an extensive programme of education focussing primarily on adults. The literacy campaign was just one of a series of extensive social and economic policies – agrarian reform and health care provision being the other principle measures - which contributed to the dramatic improvement of the quality of life among the lowest strata of Cuban society. For decades the rural peasantry languished under quasi-feudal conditions of acute poverty, ignorance and underdevelopment whilst Cuba’s resources were plundered by the United States. When Fidel Castro said that revolution and education are the same thing, he was alluding to the objective of aligning education policy with the four objectives of the Cuban Revolution, namely economic growth, attainment of an egalitarian society, liberation from the economic, political and cultural hegemony of the United States and the transformation of work into the creative activity for a ‘new socialist man’. However, the rapid expansion of education provision – particularly at primary level, was also a response to the economic crisis facing the country during the earliest phase of the Revolution. In the first three years following the overthrow of the Batista regime in 1959, and following the nationalisation of foreign firms, about 250.000 professional, managerial, technical and skilled workers and their families who made up the prosperous middle strata of Cuban society fled the country, taking their skills, expertise and experience with them. About one third of Cuba’s doctors left the country, as did about 15% of technical and professional personnel. Thus the allocation of a major part of Cuba’s productive resources to education was necessary in order to tackle this shortage of expertise and expand and develop the country’s forces of production. Mass education –with an emphasis on mathematics, science and technical skills related to production, helped to increase the country’s productive capacity, despite the fact the devoting resources to the rapid expansion of school enrolments necessitated a slower growth in higher education. According to Samuel Bowles, the emphasis on education in the early years of the Revolution derived not so much from economic calculation and careful planning but from an ideological commitment to achieving greater social equality and to bringing all of the people into the cultural and political mainstream of the nation. Throughout the 1960s economic and educational planning became more systematic, with the annual allocation of graduates of each type of educational institution by government Ministries to fill work vacancies in the sector of the economy for which they were responsible. This period also saw the expansion of free higher education and the formation of scientific and technical research institutes in every major area of production, breaking Cuba’s pre-revolutionary dependency on foreign skilled workers. Sustained investment in Education for All For an objective evaluation of how Cuba’s education system works in practice, it’s worth noting the assessment contained in a report commissioned by the World Bank (Gasperini, L. 2000) ‘Cuba is a poor country and the past decade has been particularly difficult economically. Yet the success of its schools flaunts (sic) conventional wisdom. Education in Cuba is entirely public, centrally planned, and free in a global reform environment of privatization, downscaling of the state role and cost recovery’ [i.e. profit – ed.} The report goers on to say that the Cuban education system is characterised by sustained and high levels of investment; consistent policy environment and political will in support of education for all; quality basic education, including early childhood and student health initiatives, literacy, adult and non-formal education programmes. By way of comparison, in 2012 Cuba invested 12.6% of GDP in education, compared to 5.6% in the UK and 4.9% in the USA). Notwithstanding the pressures of the economic blockade, Cuba has consistently devoted 10 -13 % GDP to education – even during the ‘Special Period’ following the collapse of the Soviet Union - well over the UNESCO recommendation of 6%. Education from ‘cradle to grave’ Cuba’s ‘cradle to grave’ education system is carefully structured along the following lines; · Comprehensive early years, primary and secondary education. · Complementary informal educational programmes outside school, including adult education. · Mechanisms to foster community participation in the management of schools. Every school has a ‘school council’ (sapndido) made up of teachers, parents, social and health professionals who offer support services to families and students. · Low cost learning materials of high quality · Extensive pre and in-service teacher training fostering high status and morale, a transparent system of accountability, strategies for developing a culture of professionalism and incentives for innovation. Teachers undergo two days of in-service training per month and weekly on-site activities. The evaluation process is peer-review oriented and emphasised development rather than documentation. Dismissal for poor performance is rare (dismissal only happens in the event of fraudulent or criminal activity) – poor teacher performance is seen as a failure of the system. · Teaching and student involvement in adapting the national curriculum and developing learning materials locally. C · Carefully structured competition that enhances the collective rather than the individual. A notable feature of Cuba’s system it its strategy for special educational needs (SEN) and for students in remote rural regions.
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