The Department of Youth Services is no stranger to organizing programs for young people and while in the past those have been for creativity, skill-building, and summer programs, like everyone else, they have had to adapt to the changing realities of COVID-19.
That's meant doing their part to combat disparities in student's access to computers, or devices of any kind. And this morning Cherisse Halsall stopped by their Belize City headquarters for a first-hand look at how the DYS is doing distance learning.
The Department of Youth Services is facilitating distance learning by addressing the lack of access to computers, devices, and guidance.
DYS communication officer Renata Samuels explains:
Renata Samuels, Communications Officer, DYS
"We are doing distance learning this time around and there are a lot of primary school students and high school students that do not have resources available. Sometimes their parents aren't equipped to be able to teach them or they have jobs so they are left there and they wonder how I'm gonna get my work done? So the department of youth services has partnered with the Ministry of Education, they found us these young people that are really in need of resources, help with resources and as well as help with the one on one sessions. So we have a group of young people that come in every day in the morning and in the afternoon, there are two different sessions from 8:30 to 11:30 and then another set comes in at 1:00 o'clock to three-thirty and what we do is every single room in our department has been transformed into an education center where we have a youth officer attached to maybe one or two young persons or maybe three depending on how much it is and they teach them the course work that they are assigned by their teachers. So they go through the work, they have access to the internet, to the computers, the printing, every single thing that they need."
We also spoke with one program officer who has had to take on the role of tutor, providing supplementary support to help kids complete their distance learning packets.
Adrianny Young, Program Assistant, DYS
"The kids come in with their work and sometimes the kids have no work that they are getting from the school so what we've checked with them is we start from the basics because some of them are actually struggling with the basics, so when they don't get work from school we try to give them access to different resources and different information for them to start learning and start practicing what they probably don't remember and probably aren't getting from their teachers."
Aliyah Castro is one of the kids currently attending the DYS Distance Learning Center. This morning she told us that adjusting to Google Classroom hasn't been difficult but that she misses the camaraderie that you can only get from the classroom.
Cherisse Halsall:
"So Aliyah tell me about what you do when you come here?"
Aliyah Castro, Student
"Schoolwork."
Cherisse Halsall:
"What kind of school work?"
Aliyah Castro, Student
"Language, math, science, social studies and more."
Cherisse Halsall:
"So how has this been different from the type of school that your used to doing?"
Aliyah Castro, Student
"It's different because you don't have any friends to be with beside you to help you with like group work and more. I would like to go back to school."
Cherissse Halsall:
"Why?"
Aliyah Castro, Student
"Because I could go with my friends and sit down with them."
That type of face to face instruction could still be a long way off. But until the day that these kids can return to the classroom they can be safe in the knowledge that The Youth Departments' doors are always open.
Renata Samuels, Communications Officer, DYS
"From the beginning a lot of young people have been saying they really need this they appreciate this they come some times even earlier than the time we assign because they want to get work done, they enjoy the program. We have youth officers that try to do pretty little icebreakers and some fun to get them on the feet rolling, we have snacks provided for them and we try to make the learning environment conducive to their growth so we have everything encompass here so that they would be able to grow and be nurtured the way they would in a classroom."
