There is deeply troubling data to confirm that students are exposed to all forms of violence in their
homes, schools, and communities, and in recent years, gender-based violence has emerged as a
growing concern across sectors. Violence is considered a public health and development issue with
serious ramifications at various levels of the society. While many school administrators may have a
desire to make their schools safer and implement programmes and policies to prevent violence, they
lack the knowledge and resources to mount a full-scale violence prevention response.
In response to this, the National College for Educational Leadership (NCEL) with funding from the
European Union Spotlight Initiative and in consultation with the Guidance Counselling Unit, has
developed the Leadership for Safer Schools (LSS) programme which was designed on the premise
that interventions to reduce gender-based violence must be grounded in behaviour change.
Imperatively, this must be brought about by the development of non-threatening school
environments where the rights of children are respected and promoted.
The programme, therefore, consists of four courses that reflect a learning progression from positive
behaviour through the School-Wide Positive Behaviour Intervention and Supports (SWBPIS)
framework to the concept of school-related Gender-Based Violence (SRGBV). This programme is
also consistent with the Ministry of Education’s mandate to provide secure, safe, child-friendly, and
stimulating learning environments in our schools. Accordingly, this programme is designed to
provide practical guidance to school leaders on strategies that can be implemented to prevent and
respond to violence at school and the surrounding community. The programme will also enable
school leaders to play an important role in preventing the expression of all forms of violence
including SRGBV; to fulfil their potential to be positive role models; to empower children and youth
to have healthy and respectful relationships; and to deliver a child-centred school-wide violence
prevention programme.
The Leadership for Safer Schools (LSS) programme has recently been successfully piloted by a
cohort consisting of principals, vice principals, guidance counsellors, deans of discipline, as well as
officers from the Safety and Security Unit and the Guidance Counselling Unit of the Ministry of
Education and Youth (MoEY). The online asynchronous programme was launched in September
2022 for cohort one (one) which consists of 55 participants, who are engaging in the courses
Managing School-Wide Behaviours; Specialised Behaviour Intervention and Support; Ending
Violence in Schools; and Gender-Based Violence in Schools.
Mrs Winnie Berry, Interim Director/Principal of NCEL indicated the programme is highly
significant and represents the College’s effort to providing high quality contextually relevant
programmes to bolster the competencies of the leadership teams in our schools. . Dr Cheryl
McLaughlin, Director of Programmes stated that the programme was generally well-received by all
pilot participants, many of whom recommended that all teachers become engaged with the learning
resources as a means of tackling issues of violence in their schools.
The participants praised the concepts of data-driven leadership and stakeholder engagement, which
were the prevalent themes throughout the courses. They also indicated that gender-based violence
was not usually a challenge to which they give much thought and that exposure to the learning
materials have piqued their interest while urging them to be more observant of the associated impact
on their school population. For Mrs. Reid Drisdale, an SMLI participant, the four (4) courses taught
in the programme are contextual, incredibly informative, targeted and cutting-edge. She has also
shared that that her leadership competencies have been greatly enhanced and that she is now more
prepared to perform all personal and professional duties optimally.
Similarly, Mr Richard Simpson narrated that he is truly delighted to have been selected as a
participant of cohort 11-15 as it has provided him with the necessary knowledge, skills, and
confidence needed to execute his role as a Dean of Discipline. “Transformative, engaging and
insightful are some words I would use when reminiscing on the online programme” he remarked,
while adding that the modules associated with the Strategic Middle Leadership Initiative (SMLI). I
am. I can unequivocally say that were well developed, were highly interactive and that its delivery
catered to different learning styles.
The College is using a coordinated approach for the delivery of the programme to future cohorts
and talks are already on the way with Mr Richard Troupe, Director of Safety and Security at the
Ministry of Education and Youth, and Mrs Kennecy Davidson, Assistant Chief Education Officer
(Acting) of the Ministry’s Guidance and Counselling Unit to ensure that learning gains are leveraged
in interventions across schools. The LSS programme may be accessed by principals, vice principals,
guidance counsellors, deans of disciplines and only senior teachers of multigrade school.
Given that the programme is self-paced and asynchronous, the College is hopeful that it will be
widely supported given the prevalence of maladaptive behaviours and various forms of violence in
schools. Principals are encouraged to contact the College to arrange for group participation for
relevant members of their teams.
