News Release:
Mustique Educational Trust Announces the First-Ever Awards Banquet for the Mustique Community Computer Education Programme
May 20, 2005
The Mustique Educational Trust (MET) announces the first-ever awards banquet for the Mustique Community Computer Education Programme (MCCEP), which will be held at Basil's Bar & Restaurant on Tuesday, May 31 at 7:30pm.
Event Description
The awards banquet will be an occasion for the more than 200 persons currently participating in the MCCEP to celebrate their accomplishments since the programme's inception in February, 2004.
Invitations have been sent to representatives from the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Telecommunications, Science, Technology, & Industry, including both Honorable Ministers.
In addition to remarks made by representatives of both ministries, MET representative Basil Charles, Mustique Company Managing Director Brian Alexander and MCCEP Coordinator Charles Scrase will address the gathering.
Awards will be given out to students in the MCCEP who have demonstrated outstanding achievement, improvement, dedication and enthusiasm to their studies.
Additionally, the MCCEP will make an official announcement at this time as to their joining with the National Institute of Technology (NIT) to become a satellite testing centre for the International Computer Drivers License (ICDL) examination.
Students in the MCCEP who purchase tickets to the banquet will be entered into a drawing to win a brand new Dell laptop computer, donated by the Mustique Company Limited. The computer will be presented at the end of the festivities to the winner.
Programme Description
Computer education in Mustique was the idea of Basil Charles and Dianne Wilson, key members of the MET. They saw an opportunity for Vincentians living and working on Mustique: an adult computer education programme that would not only draw great interest, but would also pave the way for adults in Mustique to become more involved in their own education and eventually give way to education in other areas. A literacy component was sources that would allow even the least accomplished reader could learn to use a computer and the computer would then aid in increasing reading skills.
In January of 2004, the MET hired Charles Scrase, a former United States Peace Corps volunteer who had just finished his service in St. Vincent, where he acted as the first-ever Information Technology instructor at the Petit Bordel Secondary School and Multipurpose Centre, and was also instrumental in the development of the CXC Information Technology programme in St. Vincent & the Grenadines.
Mr. Scrase developed a computer education curriculum centered on giving adults the necessary practical skills to operate a computer for everyday use, focusing on skills such as word processing, internet research and e-mail communication.
In the course of the 15 months that the MCCEP has been in operation, more than 300 persons have taken classes, and the sign up rate for new students is high still. The MCCEP offers classes from 2pm until 10pm, Monday through Saturday, and has a unique schedule structure that allows for the busy working population of Mustique to stay invovled in classes. Computers are available for practice and use in the Primary School computer lab and at the local library.
Currently, Mr. Scrase is assisted part-time by Natasha Joseph, a former computer educator in Bequia who works full-time as a librarian at the Mustique Community Library. Mr. Scrase is training Ms. Joseph, enhancing her already adept teaching skills and improving her curriculum development abilities.
Today the MCCEP offers classes at three different curriculum levels: introductory, intermediate and ICDL preparation. The curriculum for both the introductory and intermediate levels has been developed locally by Mr. Scrase and Ms. Joseph, while the ICDL preparatory curriculum prepares students to take the actual ICDL examination, which is one of many IT-related certification programmes offered at the NIT.
The MCCEP is offered to all adults on the island of Mustique free of charge, and is entirely financed by the MET.