The Editor, Sir:

Friday's letter by Ms. Kimberley Vaughns, a Jamaican teaching in Japan, is most instructive.

Thank you, Ms. Vaughns, for setting the record straight for those who believe that Jamaican teachers are not entitled to the few benefits that they do get.

Imagine - schools with 80 children, begin at 8:30 a.m., not 7:40 a.m.; no teaching after 3:20 p.m., while our system expects teachers to flog themselves to death; 40 days casual leave - WOW!; two bonuses per year on top of their high salaries; no need for further studies after the first degree and our system demands that teachers get higher degrees for a few dollars more - WOW again! and all the appliances and technologies needed - WOW three times! Yes, for the salaries that Japanese teachers get, most anybody would teach.

For those who think that teaching is easy and that Jamaican teachers are getting off easy - I say get qualified and join the classroom.

Peter and others like him should be glad to jump at the chance to show how to teach. They are all very qualified for this.

I am, etc.,

CLIVE OCNACUWENGA

gingerground@hotmail.com

Via Go-Jamaica