Biography - An Account of his life (1879-1981)

Reverend Henry Ward was born in Golden Grove, St. Ann. He received his early education at Clapham Elementary School, and then moved on to St. George’s Elementary in guys Hill. There he passed the Pupil Teachers’ Examination with distinction and gained an exhibitioner’s scholarship to the Micro Teachers’ College. He distinguished himself at Mico, and his personal conduct was exemplary throughout his college career. In 1900, he graduated from Mico as an honor student. He first taught at Ebenezer School in Manchester. There he demanded and achieved excellence.

In 1910, at the age of 31, Rev. Ward was elected president of the then Jamaica Union of Teachers. One year later, he answered the
In the early twentieth century many 3-6 years old children were left unattended at home or in the care of family members while their parents went out to work in sugar and banana plantations and in factories. At that time, it was not the policy of the Government of Jamaica to provide education for children below the age of six and a half year old.

T he Goal: For most of the early century, the Jamaican government decreed early education to be the "responsibility of the parent or, in their default/inability to meet it, the responsibility of the local community" (Bernard van Leer Foundation, 1972, p. 12). Therefore, local communities assumed the responsibility for providing out-of-home care for the majority of 3-to 6-year-olds who need it. When the need for care became obvious, Jamaican citizens took it upon themselves to find answers. Henry Ward, one of the early pioneers, started the early childhood with some important goals for this project. They were: • Provide training for Early Childhood teachers • Improve the curriculum taught to these children • Provide appropriate learning resources and materials • Improve the physical conditions, such as the buildings win which classes were kept.

O
Peration of the program: The education of very young Jamaican children began in the late 19th century when a few women teachers were allowed to teach a small number of children in primary and infant schools. It was not until the 1930s that an