Photo by Oliver Wright
Lorna Downie, principal of Wolmer's Prep School, has dedicated her heart and life to teaching. In 1994, she prepared 60 students for the then Common Entrance Examination, and all 60 were successful.Misha Lobban, Contributor
"The best teachers teach from the heart, not from the book." These words from an unknown author best describe Lorna Downie, who has dedicated her heart and life to teaching. Her philosophy in educating her students is, "If a child cannot learn the way you teach, teach the way he learns."
A selfless and devoted teacher for the last 32 years, her remarkable achievements include having an outstanding track record of not less that 85 per cent passes in the Common Entrance Examinations during the 19 years she taught at Jessie Ripoll Primary School. Most noteworthy was the 100 per cent pass she pulled off in 1994, when the 60 students she prepared for the examination were all awarded places in high schools.
Crowning achievement
The crowning achievement for her high standard and outstanding performance in the classroom was her appointment as principal of Wolmer's Pre-school and Preparatory School on September 1.
Her goal as an educator is to be an effective leader in education, and to empower teachers and students by creating a cohesive environment for learning and development.
She was introduced to teaching in 1975, through the National Youth Service, when she worked at White Hall Primary School in St. Thomas. She remained at the school for two years as a pre-trained teacher after which she enrolled at Mico Teachers' College.
In 1983, she obtained a Teacher's Certificate from Mico. Armed with her certificate, she returned to her alma mater, Duckenfield Primary School in St. Thomas, where she taught for four years (1983-1987) before returning to Mico to upgrade her certificate to a diploma.
In 1988, she joined the staff of Jessie Ripoll Primary School, where she taught for 19 years and served as a senior teacher, grade coordinator and teacher representative on the school board.
"The first class I had was the slowest within the grade five stream. At that time, no child from this class was allowed to sit the Common Entrance Examination. I prepared and sent three students to sit the examination as I was confident that they could do it, and two of them were successful."
Quality time
Employing her philosophy in teaching the students, instead of doing a lot of 'talk and chalk', she spent quality time with each of them, dedicating hours of her time after school to teach them.
Her success in improving the performance of the 21 students in this class resulted in her being asked to teach those preparing for the examination. In 1990, she was given her first Common Entrance class comprising 54 students.
"I took up the challenge and in that year only one student failed the exam, and from then, only one or two children would fail from among those I prepared for the exams. But I felt that was not good enough because I couldn't bear to see those who failed cry. It just broke my heart and so I decided to do what I could to ensure that every one of my students would be successful."
This meant opening her home in Vineyard Town to students living in Allman Town, Franklyn Town and surrounding communities on Saturday and Sunday evenings, to assist them in the subject areas where they were weak, at the expense of her personal time and family commitments. Her students also had her telephone number to freely call her. Her belief has always been to show children that they are loved and that she believed in them, and it has always helped them to improve academically.
Outstanding track record
In 1994, 60 students were prepared for the examination and all 60 were successful. She continued to maintain her outstanding track record of Common Entrance passes until the introduction of the GSAT examination.
At that time, she focused on equipping grade five students with the necessary foundation to sit the GSAT exams in grade six. She was later asked to teach the grade six GSAT class, and in that year she achieved another record, when one of her students was awarded a Government scholarship. During the four years that she continued to teach the class, other students were awarded scholarships, including another Government scholarship in July this year.
Her insatiable desire for excellence and high standards led her to pursue further studies in education.
In 2001, she graduated magna cum laude with a B.Sc. degree from Temple University in Pennsylvania, USA. Classes for the BSc. Programme were held in Mandeville, which meant that she would leave Jessie Ripoll at 2:30 p.m. to travel to Mandeville for classes at 4:00 p.m., and from Mandeville to St. Thomas where she lived. From there, she would travel to Kingston in the mornings to teach classes at Jessie Ripoll. She did this for two years without short-changing herself or her students.
She later obtained an M.Sc. in Educational Leadership and Administration from Central Connecticut State University, USA, which was done through Mico Teachers' College. In 2006, she obtained a Diploma in School Management from Mount St. Vincent University.
Transition to principal
On September 1, she made the transition from teacher to principal of Wolmer's Pre-school and Preparatory School. But for her, the roles cannot be separated.
"Some people believe that a principal is an administrator but I believe a principal must be aware of what is happening in the classroom. You cannot sit behind a desk if you are going to be an effective principal. In fact, I promised the parents that I would be an integral part of the teaching and learning process for the students."
In keeping with her promise, she has decided to visit classes at particular times and to teach specific subjects on those occasions. She is gravely concerned about the increasing number of students who have been failing mathematics at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels, and so her primary focus will be to help with the teaching of that subject.
Prior to joining Wolmer's, she has been and continues to serve as a Mathematics Resource Teacher and a School-based Assessment Coordinator on behalf of the Ministry of Education, conducting workshops with teachers aimed at equipping them with the skills required to teach mathematics effectively, and to set appropriate tests based on students' cognitive levels.
Within her one month at Wolmer's Prep., she has introduced a mathematics diagnostics test for grade six students - a first in the history of the school. The test is based on the Ministry of Education's curriculum guide for grade five and is being used to identify the weaknesses of each student. The results of the test will be used to develop strategies to enhance the teaching and learning process.
Humble upbringing
Lorna's personal philosophy, "measure me not by th that I have reached but from the depths which I have climbed", is a constant reminder of her humble upbringing.
She was born in Cedar Valley, St. Thomas, to Edward Douglas (a police officer, now deceased) and Deles Smith (a seamstress). She attended the Duckenfield Primary School and later Morant Bay High School.
She recalls the story of attending a wedding barefooted at the age of 11.
"My mother sewed the dresses for the wedding but she wasn't paid, so there wasn't any money at the time to buy me a pair of shoes but she made me a lovely dress. We went early before the guests arrived and I hid my feet under the bench. After the wedding I was waiting for most persons to leave but a little girl saw me and pointed me out to everybody and I was embarrassed."
She made a decision then that any pair of shoes she wanted she would have it, and the only way out was to get a good education, and that has been her motivation to succeed.
No desire to teach
Growing up, Lorna never had a desire to teach but was determined to be a professional secretary. However, after high school she enrolled in the National Youth Service, from there to White Hall Primary, and the story of her life was rearranged.
"The principal was a Mrs. Inez Bell and she saw in me what I didn't see. She would always tell me that I should be a teacher. There was also a trained teacher, Mrs. Merlene Ford, who also told me that I was so good at teaching and that I should be a teacher. I started to think about it as I became more comfortable around the children."
Lorna is married to Cleveland Downie and they have two children, daughter Nicholette, who is now married, and son Nicoy, who attends Campion College.
The couple met in 1980 but have been married for the last 15 years. The union has been a long-distance one as her husband has been living in the United States for over 22 years. "The marriage has been good and it's based on trust. I have never wanted to live in the United States and my husband is very understanding."
Her son says of her, "I don't know if one person can give so much love," and this speaks resoundingly of her selfless devotion and commitment to her family, her students and to the field of education.
Her passion for improving the educational standard of her students is driven by the fact that, "Every time I see a boy, I see my son, and every time I see a little girl, I see my daughter. I always say I would have wanted their teacher help them if they were not academically inclined, and that's what I have dedicated my life to doing for other people's children."
