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Desreen Williams
Thursday, June 05, 2008
WE are almost at the end of the school year 2007-2008.
This school year is very significant because it marks the implementation of the free tuition policy of the Jamaica Labour Party's (JLPs) administration.
Many Jamaicans, like myself, are waiting anxiously to hear the improvements that this policy has made to the educational situation of our country, and if it has not done so, what the next move is for this very important sector.
Free tuition, I must say is a very good idea, but after almost a year of implementation, I am not sure if the objectives and a clear way of implementation were properly thought out.
In 2002, Andrew Holness, the then Opposition Spokesperson on Education, now Minister of Education, indicated that the then People's National Party administration should remove tuition or school fees from newly upgraded schools. This, he said, would immediately increase inflows to those schools and remove dependency on collection of uncertain school fees. The Free Education Policy in my opinion is to make education available to all, regardless of race, class, colour or creed and to ensure that no child in Jamaica should be out of school because of tuition fees.
Mr Minister, I hope you are aware of the tremendous pressure that this policy has placed on parents to pay the other fees that exist in schools. It is said that in some cases parents are now being asked to pay more money than what they would have paid if they were paying tuition fees. The school administrators are finding it extremely difficult to manage, and are finding it hard to cope with this policy. Many of the extra-curricula activities' budgets have been cut because the funding is not available. I am not sure if the policy has caused an improvement in attendance and performance of our students, yet it has taken away from what would help to mold more rounded adults.
It leads me to ask, has this policy made any improvements in the standard of education and can this policy give the quality education that our children demand?
Mr Minister, let us know if this policy has improved our education system in anyway.
Desreen Williams is an educator
Thursday, June 05, 2008
WE are almost at the end of the school year 2007-2008.
This school year is very significant because it marks the implementation of the free tuition policy of the Jamaica Labour Party's (JLPs) administration.
Many Jamaicans, like myself, are waiting anxiously to hear the improvements that this policy has made to the educational situation of our country, and if it has not done so, what the next move is for this very important sector.
Free tuition, I must say is a very good idea, but after almost a year of implementation, I am not sure if the objectives and a clear way of implementation were properly thought out.
In 2002, Andrew Holness, the then Opposition Spokesperson on Education, now Minister of Education, indicated that the then People's National Party administration should remove tuition or school fees from newly upgraded schools. This, he said, would immediately increase inflows to those schools and remove dependency on collection of uncertain school fees. The Free Education Policy in my opinion is to make education available to all, regardless of race, class, colour or creed and to ensure that no child in Jamaica should be out of school because of tuition fees.
Mr Minister, I hope you are aware of the tremendous pressure that this policy has placed on parents to pay the other fees that exist in schools. It is said that in some cases parents are now being asked to pay more money than what they would have paid if they were paying tuition fees. The school administrators are finding it extremely difficult to manage, and are finding it hard to cope with this policy. Many of the extra-curricula activities' budgets have been cut because the funding is not available. I am not sure if the policy has caused an improvement in attendance and performance of our students, yet it has taken away from what would help to mold more rounded adults.
It leads me to ask, has this policy made any improvements in the standard of education and can this policy give the quality education that our children demand?
Mr Minister, let us know if this policy has improved our education system in anyway.
Desreen Williams is an educator
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