First Global Celebrates Success With 'Literacy Day'

In celebration of the continued literacy improvements shown by students enrolled in its 'Perfect Pitch for a Sound Education' programme, First Global Financial Services (FGFS) launched its annual Literacy Day on Friday, November 29, at the Bickersteth Primary and Infant School in St James.

 With more than 90 per cent of students enrolled in the Perfect Pitch programme showing marked improvement in their literacy scores, the First Global family, schools and students had much to celebrate. The programme, which began in 2011, has seen the bank partnering with the Ministry of Education to provide 10 primary schools across the island with musical instruments, and training teachers in how to incorporate music into their lesson plans.

Marlon Williams, coordinator for the programme at the Ministry of Education, noted that, "It has been very encouraging to see so many of the grade three and four students moving from a place where they were reading at primer and pre-primer levels in some cases, and have moved up at least one level, and many of them are up two levels."

PLEASED WITH RESULTS

Maria HoSue, vice-president, business development at FGFS, was just as pleased with the results of the programme thus far, noting that, "First Global, therefore, sees our involvement and approach to literacy as a worthy investment, especially as we aim to help Jamaica to the Millennium Development Goal of 100 per cent literacy rates in primary education by 2015."

The inaugural Literacy Day was fittingly launched in National Journalism Week, and saw students at the St James-based Bickersteth Primary and Infant School sharing content from their favourite poet and author. The students also donned costumes to represent their poet/literary artist of choice and received motivational talks from a senior journalist, as well as singer Alaine, who is the spokesperson for the programme.

Literacy Day 2013 aimed to broaden the students' appreciation for literacy skills, literary arts and the career options in this area, while encouraging and motivating the parents/caregivers, teachers and school administrators to keep working to develop literacy through music education.