We are Gutsy (Guyanese United to Serve our Youth) Inc. will soon be providing behavioural skills training at several primary schools with support from the Ministry of Education as it embarks on this journey.
The organization on Monday launched Gutsy Backyard, an online portal, which offers social and emotional needs to children through character training.
This focuses on the character development of children to hoard people skills and therefore helps them to learn different ways to handle situations.
Janice Hall, the Founder and President of We Are Gustsy Inc., explained that it is important that children learn these behavioural skills early so that they can properly engage with others and be responsible citizens.
“Our programme uses six pillars of character also referred to as six core ethical values that transcend religious, cultural and socio-economic differences and the six core values are trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship,” Hall explained.
Hal said for children to be successful they must be taught skills that instill core ethical values and moral character traits. This includes socially moral skills, namely, self-awareness, self-management and other crucial positive life skills.
She emphasised the importance of this skill through the way that people interact with each other. Hall said that children are impressionable and therefore act based on what they see which is why behavioural traits must be taught from home and reinforced at schools.
The objective of these mini sessions is to teach children these traits and then point out the traits throughout the day so that the children can be reminded or acknowledged when it is used in everyday activity.
The website has several options including training and workshop activities which will help children with moral skills.
Chief Education Officer (CEO) of the Ministry of Education, Dr Marcel Hutson said that the Ministry supports the efforts by Gutsy. He said that the Ministry is aware that there are behavioural issues among the children at schools. He mentioned that children are starting fights, walking with air pistols and overall having antisocial behaviour.
“I believe this is where Gutsy is playing a fundamental role in leveraging resources of the wider community…
“I believe that Gusty’s contribution to the whole notion of character building will be important in us addressing some of the deviant behaviour we have seen from our school children,” Dr Hutson said.
Meanwhile, Rosalinda Rasul, Head of the Foreign Diaspora Affairs Unit said that Gutsy will receive support from the unit as it continues its efforts to provide this service to the children, teachers and parents/caregivers.
Eight primary schools received some of 70 tablets which cost the organisation US$10,000. Hall told the News Room that schools that were willing to work along with them were the recipients of the tablets. She said that these schools will be given tablets based on the need for the tablets. Therefore schools that have multiple computer systems will receive less than those with barely any systems.
