Violence and bullying in public schools should not be ignored

Feb 26, 2015 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,
In this election year, parents should demand an end to the numerous acts of violence and bullying in the public schools, many of which have gone unreported. Although this has been occurring for quite awhile, it still has not fully engaged the attention of the Ministry of Education and the Cabinet in a meaningful way.
Is it because the school system is broken? Or is it because those involved are among the poorest in society with low academic achievement? Unlike the PPP regime which has ignored violence and bullying in the public schools for over a decade, the APNU/AFC Pro-Democracy Alliance will pay full attention to it.
Although the Minister has stated that misbehaving would not be tolerated and that students could be taken to the courts and charged with a series of offences, most of the students have defied this warning in order to maintain an image and, as a consequence, become role models among their peers, thus giving them a sense of immediate gratification.
For the past three years, the Ministry of Education has not presented any sound policy as a first step to addressing this problem. The reason is not only poor leadership, but those in authority are more preoccupied with party politics and electioneering than creating sound policies to reduce failures in the public schools and to discipline the students. Education psychologists have argued and several studies on child delinquency have highlighted some of the reasons that would influence and trigger the type of deviant juvenile behaviours pervading the public school system:
1. Weak parent-to-child bond;
2. Parents are of lower socioeconomic status;
3. Single-parent homes;
4. Fatherless parenting; and
5. Low self-esteem.
The $10,000 payment to parents by the Ministry of Education has not improved the situation, because it did not fit into the structure of social and educational policy planning. Rather, it was politically motivated to encourage parents to support the PPP regime in the upcoming elections. Furthermore, the Jagdeo/Ramotar regime does not believe or accept education as the primary vehicle for the country’s sustainable and human development and, ultimately, the greatest contributor to the creation of a globally competitive workforce.
The results that have emerged from the public schools over the years have shown that the performance of the primary and secondary schools is mediocre to say the least. This latest assessment by the Ministry, which has not been made public, is similar to the results of the previous years. In fact, it shows that more than 65 percent of the public schools are performing less than satisfactory, and that a large number of students are not attaining the minimum academic standards required to pursue post-secondary education.
What is even worse, these trends are not likely to change under the PPP cabal, because they and their rich friends have abandoned the public school system for the private schools. Additionally, more than half of the lessons are unsatisfactory, due to the fact that there is absolutely no linkage between pedagogical practices and the national curriculum.
To remedy the situation, the AFC/APNU Pro-Democracy Alliance would have to establish a task force to conduct a thorough review of the public education system in order to improve performance and reduce the failure rate. The Alliance would present an action plan consistent with the vision to create a world-class education system in Guyana.
In line with this recommendation, the Alliance will formulate the policy and legislative framework for the establishment of an Independent Education Commission to address the issues identified and effect changes complementary to the transformation of the education sector throughout the country.
They will also establish a National Education Quality Assurance Board to address the issues of performance and accountability not only in the public school system but in the private schools, technical Colleges and the University of Guyana.
This “New Approach to Education in Guyana” will be framed within the context of the AFC/APNU-Pro-Democracy Alliance formal education system for a brighter Guyana.
Asquith Rose
Chandra Deolall,
Dr. Merle Spencer-Marks

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Violence and bullying in public schools should not be ignored

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