HENRY-WILSONSEVERAL MEASURES are being instituted to improve the quality of the educational system, but parents have a role in this, says Maxine Henry-Wilson, Minister of Education, Youth and Culture.
As schools throughout Jamaica reopen today, the minister said a collective approach was needed to improve students' performance. She was speaking in a nationwide broadcast on radio and television last night.
Mrs. Henry-Wilson said that "parents should feel obliged to invest in their child's future and those of you who cannot contribute in full, we urge you to dialogue with your school and make the necessary arrangements. The schools are flexible and will assist as best as possible but they need to hear from you."
Fees are not charged at the primary level but schools may ask parents for contributions to extra-curricular programmes, she said.
At the secondary level, parents are asked to bear a portion of the total cost of a child's education. The Education Minister said, "Even when you pay the full amount indicated on the voucher, you are still paying only a fraction of the total cost of your child's education."
COST-SHARING
Assistance is available through cost-sharing, which is administered through the Ministry of Education. Parents who have children in the secondary system should have already applied as the closing date for application was July 30.
"If you satisfy the criteria based on your income level, the Government pays half the school fees directly to the school," she said. "You are expected to pay the other half."
Additionally, there is the PATH programme, administered by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security. Mrs. Henry-Wilson said, "Beneficiaries under this programme will receive full payment of their school fees as well as a cash benefit of $800 every two months."
In terms of the performance, Mrs. Henry-Wilson said it was imperative that quality education be provided throughout the system and this should be seen as a collective effort.
She said that while there were "pockets of excellence" throughout Jamaica, this should become the norm. She pointed out that a new intervention was scheduled to come on stream soon to improve CXC performance.
"The CXC intervention to come on stream this school year is designed to improve
performance in Mathematics and English and will also involve retooling of teachers with cutting-edge strategies and methods," she said.
Mrs Henry-Wilson said her Ministry would be pressing forward its performance evaluation system, which is designed to ensure closer supervision and monitoring to increase accountability.
The panel inspection programme has also been strengthened with the goal of providing valuable data on the performance of schools to assist the education ministry with making decisions and corrective responses to the performance gaps.
In addition to improving performance, violence in schools will also be tackled through a "joined up" initiative to reduce and prevent violence in schools and give support to those school personnel who are constantly exposed to violence.
But she said that parents should ensure that their children attend school. She pointed out that while some parents may want their children to attend "name brand" primary schools, this should not be done at the expense of keeping the child out of school.
She added that a "creative solution" was being devised for the 3,000 grade nine students who were not placed.
Mrs Henry-Wilson said that efforts had been made by the Ministry to provide more spaces for students in schools. Additional classroom space was being created in schools in Cumberland and Eltham, St. Catherine, and this should be ready by October. Also, under the North West Jamaica Project, more than 2,700 secondary spaces had been created, she said.
By July 2005, the Ministry of Education intends to complete five secondary, two primary and five basic schools in the western part of the island.
