Minister of Education (MOE), Dr. Nyan Gadsby-Dolly, joined the Minister of Sport and Community Development (MSCD), Shamfa Cudjoe, and a delegation of technical staff for the annual Inter-Secondary School Association (ISSA)/Grace Kennedy Boys’ and Girls’ Track and Field Championships, popularly known as “Champs”, hosted from March 28 to April 1, 2023 in Jamaica. This visit will allow the delegation to explore Jamaica’s Sport Development architecture which extends into the schools from the ECCE to Secondary levels.
“Champs” is an annual event and culminates the Boys’ and Girls’ Sport Championships where all levels are represented, the most prestigious of which is the Secondary School level Championships which is put on by the Inter-Secondary School Association (ISSA). That organization involves all Principals from Secondary Schools and is in fact lead by Principals. The event draws full attendance of students, parents, school staff, alumni, the general sporting public as well as scouts from foreign universities and colleges in the United States and United Kingdom.
According to Education Minister, “This is a unique opportunity to see how Sport Development is positioned and fostered within the school system but supported on a national level. In Jamaica, it is a joint effort between the Ministries with responsibility for Sport and Education, as well as State Agencies, Teacher and Principal Associations, NGOs and Corporate entities.” The Alumni Associations, Corporate entities and the National Sports Development Fund provide the majority of funding for sport development through schools, with successful Jamaican athletes also giving back to their schools and communities to boost developing athletes. Schools also do their fund raising to support their athletes, who must maintain a certain average to participate in Champs. The school pride and spirit are evident, and drives high levels of teacher, Principal and Alumni Association volunteerism with Principals heavily involved, on a voluntary basis, in the process.
The coaching is also key, and Principals hire coaches who are then exposed to professional development from the Institute of Sport (INSPORTS), an agency under the Ministry of Sport, or from tertiary level institutions such as UTech and GC Foster. INSPORT is dedicated to Sport development at the community and school level- so they organize the Championships at Preschool and Primary Level and provide support and training camps for these levels in the vacation periods.
As Trinidad and Tobago pivots towards the development of a National Sport Pathway in collaboration with Jamaica and its sports stakeholders, the visit provides direct insight into the successful development of sporting programmes, in particular track and field, in schools. It also allows for the TT delegation to observe the pre event planning and well as post event evaluations for critical take-aways. The ISSS/Grace Kennedy Boys’ and Girls’ Track and Field Championship will act as model for Trinidad and Tobago as it prepares to host secondary school track and field champions from across the Caribbean.