The Safe Schools Secret-ariat is conducting a survey to assess the prevalence of gangs in 10 schools across the island.
The survey, which began in June, is being carried out by police personnel called school resource officers (SROs), in collaboration with principals and guidance counsellors.
Norman Heywood, coordinator of the police component of the Safe Schools Programme, said the survey would not target students who were in groups but "will focus on those students who are organised, have a common design and those who are bent on procuring money and other terms by means of extortion".
Additionally, he said the survey would target students who took on the names of prominent gangs operating in the community.
Superintendent Heywood said the investigation would be done in all schools involved in the Safe Schools Programme in the long term.
PROMINENT
GANGS
It is expected that the various interventions will be designed by officials of the Safe School programme to stem the problem.
These interventions, Superintendent Heywood acknowledged, could involve a more direct approach by calling in parents to deal with the matter or by having a one-on-one session with SRO.
Superintendent Heywood said students normally join gangs as a result of parental neglect. This, he said, resulted from a need to seek approval from other students.
LACK OF SELF-ESTEEM
"I learned very early in the programme because of protection from other students, persons would join gangs, sometimes because of a lack of self-esteem and because others are easily influenced," he pointed out.
The Safe Schools Programme is a government initiative to tackle violence in schools. To date, a total of 114 police officers have been trained as SROs, with 97 dispatched to 92 schools. An additional 36 SROs should be added to the complement by June 2007.
