Shandra Harriot, a volunteer teacher at the homework centre assists a student with a Math problem. - Ian AllenMichelle Barrett, Freelance Writer
FIRE-FIGHTERS at the Trench Town Fire Station on Spanish Town Road are igniting a fire that has illuminated the darkness within Trench Town and other surrounding communities, shedding a bright light on young minds in these areas.
In January, a homework centre was opened at the station to get school children off the streets and into a place of study in order to keep them in the productive mode during after school hours.
When The Gleaner visited the centre last week, the children were engrossed in studies under the cool shade of a mango tree in the fire station's yard. Supervised by volunteer teacher Shandra Harriot, a junior accounting clerk by profession, and Crystal Hylton, a 15-year-old student at the Donald Quarrie High School, the children were scribbling in their notebooks as they copied notes from the chalkboard before them. The subject for the evening was English Language and the topic of the day was Homonyms.
Among this group is 10-year-old Latoya Clarke. She attends St. Andrew Primary School and resides on Columbus Road in Trench Town with her mother and older brother.
"Where I live, there is just so much noise around me that I can't get to concentrate. Sometimes at nights, I hear gunshots and because of this, I can't get to study, no matter how hard I try and I really want to learn," said the little chocolate-browned beauty.
Latoya said she found out about the homework centre from a brochure that was sent to her home by the fire-fighters. Being eager to learn and yearning to do her best in her academic studies, Latoya, with the permission of her mother, took up the invitation and presented herself during the opening day of the centre.
"Since going to the centre, I have been doing much better at school and sometimes I go to the teacher's house to ask her to explain some things that are not so clear to me when I'm in class," said Latoya.
Besides concentrating on her studies, Latoya also has to deal with the loss of her best friend, nine-year-old Devardo Spence, whose life was snuffed out by a gunman's bullet several months ago. The loss has affected Latoya so deeply that she complained of having problems sleeping at nights.
"Sometimes I cry myself to sleep, but I wake up the next morning and go to school knowing that he would want me to go no matter what," said Latoya who is confident that she will pass her GSAT Examinations later this month.
Twelve-year-old Tavon King also aspires to pass his GSAT examinations. Tavon is considered to be a "slow" student at Boys' Town All-Age School in Trench Town. It is for this reason why he decided to join the homework centre.
"I was dropping back in my school work and I know that the extra study time will help me to do my lessons better, especially in a place like this," said a very shy Tavon.
The soft-spoken resident from Rema said that since attending the centre for the past two months, he has improved in Maths and English. In addition, he is also able to study with a regular work schedule.
Latoya and Tavon are only two of the many children who have benefited from the centre, according to District Officer Clifton Daley, who noted that since the opening of the centre in January, they have received overwhelming response from both parents and children. He further stated that more than 70 persons had originally signed up for the programme but they were unable to accommodate them and so the fire-fighters had to turn away the older students, choosing instead to concentrate on those who have reached or near GSAT age.
"Since we are located out on the front along Spanish Town Road, many persons come to us asking us a number of questions, Maths, History, general knowledge... just about everything," said Mr. Daley.
This, he said, is one of the reasons added with the deep concern that the fire-fighters have for the children living in surrounding areas, which made them decide to open a homework centre with the assistance of Air Jamaica Express and Guardian Life Insurance Company.
He also added that the firemen in the community are seen as father figures to those who don't know their fathers. Sometimes the fire-fighters are even forced to play the additional role of teachers. As Mr. Daley explained, sometimes the station receives calls from students and adults asking assistance for information on various topics. Owing to this, they had to seek outside assistance in the teaching department and so they found Shandra Harriot, a junior accounting clerk.
"It really wasn't a difficult decision for me to make as I enjoy shaping the lives of young people. They're learning from me and I'm also learning from them. Teaching also gives me a chance to instil some hope in them by reinforcing the message that not because they're from the inner city, this does not mean that they're of less value than their counterparts who live elsewhere. I've seen how they perform and they're just as good as any other children," said Miss Harriot.
