By Lakhram Bhagirat
Every teacher has his or her goals when they join the profession, the aim to mould and impart knowledge to make their students worthy citizens and that has been the goal of Lloyd Thomas from the beginning
Born and raised in Kwakwani, Berbice River, Thomas is a 29-year-old Spanish, Theatre and Performing Arts teacher at the St Joseph High School. Education is and has always been a priority to Thomas and his family as, he explains, education is viewed as the gateway out of poverty.
He notes that his childhood was filled with lots of fond memories and childhood experiences that taught him lessons while developing his true potential to be functional in society. After completing his formal secondary education at the Kwakwani Secondary and the Linden Foundation High, the boisterous young man joined the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE).
In 2012, he graduated from CPCE and in 2014, he completed a Diploma in Theatre Arts and Drama at the National School of Theatre Arts and Drama. In 2015, he graduated with a Certificate in Dance from the National School of Dance. 
“I grew up in a middle-class family who saw education as a means of change and upward mobility. So my late grandmother, Mrs Margaret Thomas ensured that she did everything in her power to send us to school and invest in our education with the help of our immediate and far-fetched families. Her main goal was for me to have an education and develop myself in an attempt to decrease the instance of poverty,” Thomas said.
His teaching career formally began after he completed CPCE when he joined the St Joseph High School where he teaches students from Grades 8 through 12.
“I perform the roles and responsibility of teaching while executing the task of Assistant Examiner with the Caribbean Examination Council. My first day of teaching was quite interesting. The classroom and its environs were so different from what was inculcated in college and I had to adapt quickly. The adaptation allowed me to exercise and develop new strategies to meet the needs of my learners while linking the classroom to society,” he explained.
However, the profession has evolved into one of great importance over the years as he has taken the career as a personal achievement that has moulded him to develop the minds of the future generation. Thomas’s students, over the years, have shown great interest in their work and presented positive energies that motivate him every day to continue within the profession.
“Their behaviours are no different from that of an adolescent and so I am unbothered by it because my sense of humour, professionalism and approach reduce the instances of frustration or an uncontrollable classroom. I see myself as continuing in the path of a great educator with my goals clearly aligned and the targets achievable. Hence, I will continue to do my best to ensure that quality education is delivered to all my students so as to eradicate instances of illiteracy and by extension build my nation.
“However, staying in the classroom for a lifetime is uncertain because it is my greatest desire to serve on the panel of policy makers in the education sector. This will definitely assist me in achieving my ultimate goal of bridging the gap between education and culture in Guyana,” he adds.
Teaching is not the only career Thomas focuses on as in his spare time, he runs a performing arts company – Lloyd N De Arts Production. This company was established in 2016. The main goal is to develop youths across Guyana in the field of performing arts while showcasing their talents. As a company, Lloyd N De Arts Production has successfully hosted a number of productions, including “Culturama 2” with a tribute to local theatre icon Desiree Edghill.
“My philosophy is to educate every child to the best of their ability with all the resources available to me, so that he or she may function beyond the classroom and become meaningful citizens in Guyana,” Thomas says.
(Times Sunday Magazine)
