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News : Bahamas Information Services Updates Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM


BFSB & Partners Launch Language Learning Programme in Public High Schools
By Bahamas Financial Services Board
Aug 28, 2015 - 9:52:08 AM

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Nassau, Bahamas - The Bahamas Financial Services Board and the Ministry of Financial Services have partnered with the Ministry of Education and language learning programme Rosetta Stone Inc. (NYSE:RST) to introduce a pilot programme within public junior and senior high schools throughout The Bahamas.  The programme starts in September and continues through to the end of the 2015-2016 school year.   Rosetta Stone is a recognized industry leader in technology based language and literacy solutions and is used by millions of individuals and thousands schools, businesses, government organizations around the world. Rosetta Stone already has been proven effective in helping members of BFSB improve language proficiency since the programme was made available to its member firms over three years ago.

“Ideally positioned at the crossroads of the Americas, The Bahamas has benefitted from its many natural advantages.  However, a key ingredient of its success has been and always will be found in the capacity of its people,” said BFSB CEO Aliya Allen.  “As we seek to expand economic opportunities for Bahamians we have to ensure that we are ready to participate in a global job market that is demanding, exacting and highly competitive. Language learning is critical to achieving this goal and we’re thrilled to continue working with Rosetta Stone to help expand their programmes to students in our country.”

Ms. Allen also noted that BFSB’s work in positioning The Bahamas as a hub for Latin America highlighted the fact that there is a noticeable dearth of language skills necessary in the Bahamian workforce.  She added, “Certainly the industry can import these skills, but it is also important that Bahamians appreciate the value and connections that fluency in languages provides.”

Minister of Financial Services, the Hon. C.V. Hope Strachan, M.P., confirms that bilingual employees are immediately more marketable and can command as much as 10% to 15% more in compensation just by virtue of the skill.  She says this is not a phenomenon confined to the financial services sector; tourism, manufacturing, retail, all benefit from the ability to converse with customers in their language.  According to Minister Strachan, "Language skills are now a critical requirement for professionals in the financial services sector. Therefore, we must ensure that our professionals are well-equipped to compete with their global counterparts."

The Hon. Jerome K. Fitzgerald, Minister of Education, Science and Technology acknowledges that having a second language will indeed make students more marketable. “We are preparing our public school students to be globally competitive and having acquired proficiency in a foreign language will position them to not only qualify for jobs locally but internationally; even through work exchange programmes. As we position our students for the future, it is my hope that we create the framework and environment within our public schools where fluency in a second language becomes the norm. Coupled with strong academic skills in core subjects, a second language would set them on a path for global competitiveness.”

Hector Gomez, Head of Strategic Partnerships in Latin America and Caribbean for Rosetta Stone, adds, “This partnership is a great example of collaboration with the public and private sectors of a nation, and serves as a model for how leaders can make an impact on the future of their residents through education. Today’s global market has changed the game for workers around the world and The Bahamas is making great strides by investing in language training to help its people build the core competencies required to compete in a global workforce.”

BFSB started its own Language Learning Initiative in 2012 with the launch of a Livemocha programme which then transitioned to Rosetta Stone when Livemocha was acquired by the brand in 2013. Currently, more than 120 financial services learners are participating in the 2015 programme, demonstrating keen interest in expanding their knowledge of a foreign language and eventually gaining fluency.  In previous years, as many as 250 learners have participated.

Ms. Allen said the High School programme, a part of the organisation’s “Towards a Bilingual Bahamas” initiative, was created in recognition of the importance of starting this process earlier with persons who have not entered the job market yet. “It is a small but important start to achieving the vision of a Bilingual Bahamas.”  Working with Rosetta Stone, BFSB developed the pilot programme which was accepted by the Ministry of Education.  The programme will enable 200 learners from schools around The Bahamas to begin a 9-month programme utilizing Rosetta’s K-12 learning software.  It will include a Language Learning Cadet Programme that will engage industry practitioners in interacting with the students and teachers.

The initiative could only be successful with the tremendous support it obtained from Rosetta Stone, the willingness of the Ministry of Education to allow the programme within the school system, and the financial support offered by the Ministry of Financial Services and various industry association and corporate sponsors.  The latter include: Association of International Banks & Trust Companies, Bahamas Association of Compliance Officers, Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants, Callenders & Co., CFA Society The Bahamas, Insurance Institute of The Bahamas, Julius Baer Bank & Trust and The Winterbotham Trust Company.

Donella Davis, Senior Education Officer of the Modern Languages Programme at the Ministry of Education, has been appointed Project Coordinator for this initiative, and will work closely with teachers from schools in New Providence as well as the Family Islands. Ms. Davis noted, “Utilizing Rosetta Stone will allow us to enhance our Modern Languages courses in our public high schools and complement what we currently do. I think it will also make foreign languages more appealing to students and we can use this programme to emphasize to our students the importance of having a second language, not just at a basic level but at a level of fluency.”

Ms. Allen added, “We do not want to mandate the best way to teach languages; we only wish to provide an additional resource to assist educators in accomplishing their very important goals.  Indeed, Rosetta Stone may not be the best resource for every student but to the extent it can encourage a love of foreign languages, it can help make bilingualism an achievable prospect.  We also hope that as we attract students we will also attract other sponsors of the programme.  And, of course, that the “pilot” becomes an integral part of the Ministry of Education’s language learning programme going forward.”

In advance of an August 27th teacher training workshop planned in collaboration with Rosetta Stone, the Ministry of Education also hosted a media briefing on August 26th.

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