Young gymnasts score high marks with PEP programme
Published:Sunday | July 25, 2021 | 12:10 AMLivingston Scott - Sunday Gleaner Writer
Difficulties experienced by many youngsters with online learning – since face-to-face school was suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic – became a big challenge for most parents who had to go to their workplace.
So the Jamaica Gymnastics Association (JGA), in an effort to assist their athletes who were preparing for Primary Exit Profile (PEP) exams, launched its junior development programme to make up for this shortcoming, catering for young gymnasts at their headquarters on Slipe Pen Road each day with online classes. While there, they are supervised and assisted by national coaches.
JGA president, Nicole Grant-Brown, said the programme was a great success, with eight of the nine young gymnasts from the group passing for their number one high school of choice.
Satria McLean passed for Ardenne High, Tsojourna McLean for St Andrew High for Girls, Orchid Hall for Holy Childhood, Natashley Prehay for Wolmer’s Girls, Malika Wilson for Alpha High, Emilia Sharpe for Immaculate Conception, and Kaila Campbell is off to Campion College.
Online learning
Parents Paula White and Tricia Wilson said prior to the programme, they felt they were losing the fight with their children and online learning.
“It was really good. We came last year to register as part of the family and we are glad we did. Online classes were a bit challenging as the focus was up and down. It was not consistent and as a parent you have to keep the consistency in order for them to do well in school,” Tricia Wilson, the mother of Malika Wilson, stated.
“In this COVID time the gym has also been a motivator in terms of the social aspect of their lives, as during COVID they weren’t going to school, but they could come here and be part of a family,” she pointed out.
White, the mother of Prehay, works in the days and relied on Natashley’s older sibling to supervise her at home.
“The programme really helped because when you are not at home or around to supervise them it’s hard. Here (gym) someone is always supervising them,” she said. “They see that they sit and do whatever task is given and they help them with what they don’t understand.
“With the online classes, I don’t think she got much from that. I hope they reopen schools because she will be attending a new institution and for the online classes I have to have somebody there.
“Her sister monitored her when I had to go to work. So her sister would call me to say she just called the teacher and they have class, when she said she had no class. So her sister was essential when I was not there,” White added.
Grant-Brown said they instituted the programme because parents had expressed problems with online learning and getting their children to training on time.
“We did our part to help the kids. We installed Internet so the kids could come here, do their classes and then train,” said Grant-Brown.
“They are from different gyms, but they are all part of the junior development team. Parents complained about them playing games and doing other things (during online classes). So what we did was had our coaches come early on weekdays and monitor them so they stayed focused and did what they were supposed to,” she said.