A brief history A brief history

TEACHERS' DAY will be celebrated on May 9 this year 2001. Teacher's Day is always celebrated on the Wednesday of the first full week of May, therefore the actual date varies from year to year. In 1997 it was celebrated on the 7th and in 1998 it was celebrated on the 6th. The Jamaica Teachers Association will be having a week of activities to honour our teachers and celebrate their contribution to the development of our society.

The history of Jamaica Teachers' Day celebrations goes back to 1988, when the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC) initiated the implementation. The day was incorporated in the week of activities of Education Week celebrated by the Jamaica Teachers Association. According to JCC, Ms. Collen Ho, the chairperson of the Education Committee at that time conceptualised the effort. The day was conceived to highlight the significant contribution of teachers of Jamaica. Ms. Ho and the Education Committee worked hard to give the day National recognition, and their efforts were fruitful, now each year Teachers Day is celebrated by students, parents and teachers alike across Jamaica. At the time of the implementation, there was a massive brain drain of teachers from the profession. The efforts of the JCC were aimed at motivating more young people to enter the profession and to give rise to positive perception of the profession. Rightly so Teachers Day celebrations encourage all to value and honour our educators, as they are a primary contributor to the development of a progressive nation. Educated citizens build developed nations, and all the teachers of Jamaica are entrusted with the responsibility to develop the minds and character of the human capital of the island. Teachers Day was initiated by the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce and adopted by the nation.

The history of Teachers Day in America goes back to 1944, when Mrs. Mattye Whyte Woodridge, encouraged political and education leaders to designate a special day to honour teachers. In 1953 the 81st Congress proclaimed a National Teacher Day. In 1980, Congress declared March 7, National Teachers' Day. But educators continued to celebrate Teachers' Day on the first Tuesday in March, until 1985, when the National Education Association Representative Assembly voted to make the Tuesday of the week of National Teacher Appreciation Week, Teachers Day. National Teacher Day is always celebrated in America on the Tuesday of the first full week of May.

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