Closing the Capacity-Building Cycle for the Implementation of the Associate Degree in Primary Education, led by SUMMA – KIX LAC and the University of the West Indies
Since 2022, the KIX LAC Hub —an an initiative promoted by the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada, and led in Latin America and the Caribbean by SUMMA and the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS)—has been collaborating with the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus (UWI), on the reform of the Associate Degree in Education (ADE) in Primary Education. The initiative aims to strengthen initial teacher education in the Eastern Caribbean through the use of international evidence. In its initial phase, the project was supported by IDRC and the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) and in its second phase, starting in November 2024, it also received support from the Rassmuss Foundation.
In November 2024, a technical mission was carried out in Barbados and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines with the goal of advancing the review of the new ADE Primary curriculum through dialogue among academics, teacher educators, and school system representatives. Regarding this collaboration, Javier González, Director of SUMMA, highlighted: “For the past three years, we have been working together with the University of the West Indies to transform the Primary Education Diploma curriculum, so that all new teachers become true transformative agents, promoting greater equity and quality in the classroom.”
In January 2025, the Eastern Caribbean Joint Board of Teacher Education (ECJBTE) held its annual meeting at UWI’s Cave Hill Campus, where UWI, the Eastern Caribbean countries, and their colleges reaffirmed the importance of launching the new ADE curriculum with a process of socialization and adaptation to national realities. Under the theme “Educational resilience through evidence-based teacher education”, the event brought together ministries of education, colleges, and teacher associations from across the region to discuss ways to strengthen initial and continuous teacher education, as well as the use of evidence in teaching.
Teacher Education Capacity-Building Sessions in the Eastern Caribbean
The first session took place on March 20–21 with the participation of approximately 60 people and was structured into three workshops addressing key areas of the new ADE curriculum. The first, on effective pedagogical practices, focused on the use of positive feedback and was facilitated by Dr. Karin Roa (Universidad de los Andes). The second, led by Alix Anson and Clara Hodge (Rassmuss Foundation), centered on literacy and reading comprehension strategies. Finally, the third workshop, facilitated by Dr. Carmen Montecinos (Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso), focused on reflecting on the current structures of teaching practicum programs in the Eastern Caribbean teacher colleges.
The second session, held on April 10–11, addressed effective pedagogical practices, literacy, and teaching practicum. The first space focused on the use of metacognition in teacher education and its application in the new ADE curriculum. The second, facilitated by the Rassmuss Foundation, focused on phonemic awareness, strengthening skills in literacy, and the design of reading and writing strategies. The third promoted curriculum analysis and institutional planning, encouraging participants to reflect on the coherence between full-time and part-time programs and to identify improvements for their practicum models. Collaborative work between teacher colleges and UWI was also reinforced to move toward a coherent implementation of the curriculum.
The third session was held on May 8–9. The first workshop on pedagogical practices focused on positive feedback as a tool for understanding student performance. The second, in partnership with the Rassmuss Foundation, addressed school readiness and classroom management, exploring different approaches to teaching English phonics. The final workshop revisited the teaching practicum, including a survey to identify critical points for its implementation. Preliminary results of a study conducted by Dr. Verna Knight of UWI’s School of Education on professional competencies and teacher quality in the Caribbean were also presented, identifying key areas to strengthen, such as assessment and links with schools and ministries.
The fourth session, held virtually on June 4–5, focused on three workshops aimed at strengthening pedagogical practice. Topics included collaborative learning in teacher education (led by Dr. Karin Roa), classroom management and the logic of phonics (facilitated by the Rassmuss Foundation and Celeste Burton of Anguilla College), and the new approach to teaching practicum within the ADE curriculum (led by Dr. Carmen Montecinos), who presented tools to support feedback and evaluation processes in the field.
Between July 15 and 17, the fifth and final session of the cycle was held in Grenada, marking the close of this capacity-building process. It brought together teacher educators from seven Eastern Caribbean teacher colleges, faculty from UWI’s Cave Hill Campus School of Education, and an OECS representative. The opening included remarks from key stakeholders such as Verna Knight (ECJBTE Coordinator), Javier González (Director of SUMMA), Laurette Bristol (Director of UWI’s Cave Hill School of Education), and Alarna Charles (TA Marryshow Community College). The program featured simultaneous sessions on mathematics pedagogy (with Coreen Leacock, UWI) and literacy (with Alix Anson, Rassmuss Foundation; Utica Christian, Antigua and Barbuda; and Celeste Burton, Anguilla College), as well as presentations on the foundational courses of the new ADE curriculum.
The second day focused on inclusive pedagogical practices, facilitated by Karin Roa and Utica Christian, with spaces for reflection and practical application. The workshop concluded with sessions led by Carmen Montecinos on evaluation and teaching practicum, offering tools and instruments aligned with the new curriculum. The event closed with a collective synthesis to identify common challenges and enablers for effective ADE implementation in the region.
This cycle of workshops strengthened pedagogical and professional skills critical to the effective implementation of the new ADE Primary curriculum, including strategies for feedback, planning, assessment, inclusive practices, literacy, and contextualized practicum. It also promoted collaboration between Eastern Caribbean institutions and UWI, consolidating a regional, sustained, and collaborative approach to initial teacher education.
