PASTORS GATHERED at a Gleaner Editors Forum have proposed that churches in Jamaica should have greater input and influence in the way schools are conducted. The influence being mooted would be of a spiritual and moral nature in the hope that such emphasis would help in forming the characters of students and influencing their attitudes to life away from crime and violence. Mrs. Maxine Henry-Wilson, Minister of Education, has said that she would welcome such intervention and we believe that such an approach deserves serious consideration.
Nearly all churches in Jamaica espouse doctrines which share a common ethical and moral outlook. Education in the island had its roots in denominational schools, many of which are still the best performers in the public education system. But as the system was democratised and more and more children of the poor entered it, the church-administered schools found it impossible to raise fees to a level that would ensure economic viability. One by one they were forced to accept 'grant aid' from Government and in the process surrendered much of their independence.
At this stage, the lines are somewhat blurred between the educational principles of a particular religious school and common mandates from the State as to how it should be run. Because 'he who pays the piper calls the tune', a spreading secularism may have infected the system and, given the gravity of social disorder in our schools, perhaps the time is right to rethink the degree of State control which exists at present. Government subsidies for religious schools will still have to exist, but perhaps they can come with less strings attached so that each denomination will feel freer to judge the calibre of the teachers it recruits and less constrained to let go those teachers who do not come up to its standards. In this way, the overall moral tone of the education system might indeed be lifted as suggested by the pastors. Any disadvantages to this approach might well be outweighed by the degree of success it could achieve in helping to control crime and violence.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
