Author: Debbie Jacob

Debbie Jacob I LOVED every subject in school except for mathematics, so if you had told me 55 years ago that a maths teacher would shape my future in unimaginable ways, I would have laughed and dismissed any possibility of that ever happening. Fortunately, I wasn’t clairvoyant, and I had no idea that anyone in […]

Debbie Jacob IN MY laundry list for education that I wrote about in last week’s column, I mentioned the importance of having service learning in all TT schools. Some people asked for more information on this and wanted to know the difference between volunteering and service learning. Simply put, volunteering is the act of giving […]

SEVEN inmates from Women’s Prison, Golden Grove Convict Prison and Maximum Security Prison (MSP) faced judges on January 25 when they stepped on stage at the Unattached Calypso Competition in the Belmont Community Centre to vie for a place in Calypso Fiesta, the semifinal leg of the National Calypso Monarch competition. They sang to the […]

Debbie Jacob To: Stuart Young, Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries. DEAR Minister Young, I listened with great interest to your recent remarks about wanting to reform the country’s current education system – “shifting from the colonial structure to one that’s more relatable and relevant to our culture.” There is much for someone in your […]

Debbie Jacob DOGS DID not fare well in the first week of the new year. If that means nothing to you, then it’s time to consider how a society’s treatment of animals reflects its values. Here we find ourselves caught in a downward spiral characterised by increasing selfishness, a blatant lack of consideration for others’ […]

Debbie Jacob MAYBE IT’S time to shake the tradition of New Year’s resolutions and substitute something more meaningful and achievable in their place. An article entitled Six Unusual Alternatives to Traditional New Year’s Resolutions by Vanessa Lancaster in the January 12, 2023 edition of Psychology Today suggests some interesting ideas while reminding us that less […]

Debbie Jacob MY CHRISTMAS reading tradition always features a magical, unforgettable book that I can remember as a defining moment of that year’s holiday. This Christmas, my choice is Village of One: Essays on Trinbago’s Past, Places, People by Trinidad Express journalist Richard Charan. In this remarkable collection of essays, which originally appeared as newspaper […]

Debbie Jacob SOMETIMES we recognise the moments in time that changed our lives long after they happen. I realised this last week when pan historian and filmwriter Kim Johnson and I watched his documentary Wishing for Wings with Maple Leaf International School students and teachers. In the documentary – and the book it was based […]

Debbie Jacob IF YOU doubt the old saying, “Giving is better than receiving,” you haven’t mastered the fine art of Christmas gift-giving. Christmas offers the chance to make someone remember the holiday forever, or to fail miserably and make people feel guilty and ungrateful for not liking the presents they receive. Contrary to what you […]

Debbie Jacob MY CHRISTMAS tree goes up the day after Divali because I like the feeling of going from light to light. For me, this time of year means home-made gingerbread cookies and a good book to read. Christmas is a time for reflection so it’s the best time to discover Caribbean writers and learn […]