The Bahamas Takes Steps To Keep Boys On The Path To Success

Prime Minister of the Bahamas, Hubert Ingraham, developed a bold initiative aimed at keeping adolescent boys on the path to becoming productive citizens. The Prime Minister noted that young boys in the Bahamas do well up until primary school. However, during high school, they seem to become distracted and academic performance drops. The goal of the program is to prevent and reduce the number of young men who drop out of school, and eventually enter a life of crime. Hopefully, this can be achieved through this newly created, summer intensive program.

The program will focus on English, math, oral communications, Bahamian culture and heritage, anger management, health, critical thinking, global awareness, and recreation. The program is voluntary, but parents who enroll their sons must also enroll in a mandatory parenting program. Mr. Ingraham has also requested that the religious community be involved.

This initiative is exceptional because teens go astray when they lack outlets to creativity which leads to boredom. Programs that offer a sense of community and pride are more likely to deter delinquency by helping teens to realize that they have a moral commitment to society. When teens realize the importance of their role in society, they are more likely to treat their community with respect. They realize that delinquent actions have widespread and long-lasting effects individually and collectively; and they also realize that hard work is what pays off and not instant gratification.

Hence, such initiatives that incorporate the entire community are beneficial, as they offer a sense of accountability, involvement by all, and pride. Children are at their best when they are productive, when they have a feeling of being wanted, when they are actively contributing to their environment, and when they are aware of adult support and encouragement. Hopefully, parents and teens will take advantage of this summer intensive program, and use this resource fill the gap in idle time until classes resume in September.

http://www.thenassauguardian.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=25051:pm-announces-special-program-for-boys&catid=3:news&Itemid=27

Photo Credit To Bahamas Weekly

Editor-in-Chief's Note: Ebonie Jones is a freelance contributor with MNI Alive.