Teach G-Pan in schools

PAN Trinbago president Keith Diaz wants the Education Ministry to use the 24-inch G-Pan in all schools and to teach students the history of the national instrument.

Diaz made the recommendation yesterday at a prize-giving ceremony for the National Schools Panorama and Junior Soca 2018 held at the education Towers, Port of Spain.

Representatives from 12 primary, nine secondary schools and six Junior Soca participants received certificates, trophies and cheques form both the ministry and Pan Trinbago. Diaz said schools around the world are taking pan, born and bred in TT, more seriously than Trinis.

“I want to call upon the ministry of Education to make a serious step forward with the pan in the school system. I want to recommend that they use the 24-inch G-Pan in schools because it was a pan invented by professor Brian Copeland. Having pan in the schools will help the child learn better, and I want to see children with impairment, play the pan.

“It is an original product of TT. It is original from start to finish with the G-Pan. It is very important for citizens to know what they have. I recommend that the ministry use that pan in the schools, and have more teachers in the system to teach the history of pan in the schools.

There is other history we teach in schools about all different types of people and most students do not know the history about the steel pan,” Diaz said.

Education Minister Anthony Garcia said having pan in schools is part of the CV Q curriculum of the Caribbean Examination council, and students will have the opportunity to learn about the fundamentals of pan including manufacture and tuning.

“There are seven of our secondary schools engaged at present in pan manufacturing and tuning because we are determined to ensure the steel pan and the steel pan movement is developed to such a stage that every level of the education system of students will be able to play the instrument,” Garcia said.