Give schools more money rather than insult them, says Thwaites
ST ANDREW, Jamaica — Opposition Spokesman on education and training, Ronald Thwaites, is recommending that the Government provides more money to support schools in order to prevent them from charging students exorbitant contribution fees.
Thwaites said school boards and principals in Jamaica are hard-pressed to find enough money to operate good schools and to insult them in public is the most inappropriate way to bring about cooperation.
The former education minister was responding to recent public comments from Government about parent contribution to schools, which he said were “inappropriate”.
Yesterday, Education Minister, Senator Ruel Reid named some schools that he accused of corruption and extortion in the charging of auxiliary fees.
Thwaites, in a statement issued by the Oppostion People’s National Party (PNP) today, reasoned that, at the high school level, the real cost is much more than the $17,000 or $19,000 per year contributed by the Government and the best schools spend more than $50,000 a year on each student.
“The difference between this cost and what Government sends has to be raised or else the quality of education is bound to suffer,” Thwaites said.
He further reasoned that families, “who understand the value of education and want the best for their children,” have been willing to contribute and have done so over the years.
However, “recently they have been led to believe that they really don’t have to because Government will provide all that is required. This has never happened. And no child has ever been kept out of school because of non-payment,” he added.
The education spokesman noted that while “no student should be prevented from going to school because their parents cannot contribute money to the school,” principals who press hard for contributions are neither corrupt nor extortionate.
“They are trying to encourage a proper sense of priorities among parents and to raise money to pay inescapable school bills.
“If Government thinks they should not do so, the remedy is simple. Just send each school all that they need to balance their budgets and improve their programs. Do this instead of trying to bully and intimidate them and threatening to ‘come after them’, as if they are scammers,” the PNP spokesman argued.
