Private schools need to be called into account

Mar 01, 2012 Letters

Dear Editor,
The stabbing death of Anfernee Bowman on Monday which occurred outside the premises of his extra lessons should have never occurred. In my interaction with friends of both of the young men, the deceased and the accused, it was related that the accused was in the habit of making death treats to his now deceased victim.
The incident has caused me to pen this letter because of the many spinoffs that such an incident has for school aged children. It also spells clearly the need for private educational institutions to understand that their role and existence is more than just making money. It is also about ensuring that the interest of both teachers and students are top priority.
While the Ministry of Education’s aim to regularize these private educational institutions may not be something that happens as fast as we may want to see, the incident of Monday February 27, last, surely underscores the need for the regulation to be in place.
The regulation of these institutions should not just be aimed at keeping these schools in line as it relates to curriculum, but should also spell out the procedure that will need to be followed when certain issues occur within the walls of those schools.
While it may not be a secret that some private schools do produce good grades at examinations and are responsible for a few high flyers at CSEC, one cannot shy away from the fact that many of these schools tend to focus more on the income that amounts to hundreds of thousands dollars monthly. The sad reality is however, that the focus is at the expense of the wellbeing of the students and in some cases, teachers.
There are too many incidents that occur within the walls of some private educational institutions and which some directors and heads are at pains to keep within those walls, even if those occurrences tend to be criminal in nature.
The reason for that is simple; no one wants to bring his or her dirty cloth to the gate for all to see. Putting it into perspective, directors and heads of schools– both private and public — will prefer to deal with everything within rather than it being reported. Their usual claim (which I consider very silly) is the fear of the media getting wind of the issue(s).
That however ends up being to their determent. That is so because in most cases during their zest to keep the media out, so many unacceptable procedures are then implied that when the broom hits the dust the latter goes flying all over and ends up being bigger than it really was. That happens because the unacceptable procedure and the actual issue is what then has to be dealt with.
Private educational institutions need to immediately report to the police acts that appear criminal in nature especially if the actions are aimed at those attached to the institution. These range from child abuse, threatening language, abuse of teachers, gang fights and the other common cases that require the law to intervene.
It is understandable that there are issues that can be dealt with at the level of the school but these must not be confused with those that threaten the wellbeing of the students and those who have interests with these institutions, and which by extension threaten the stability of the communities in which these institutions are located.
I appeal to the directors, heads and administrators of private educational institutions to pay keen and meaningful attention to the wellbeing of students and teachers and not just focus on the financial gains of operating a paid educational institution.
While the schools may be yours and rules are set by you, each child who enters the school gates happens to be the priority of the state.
Leroy Smith

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