IMMEDIATE past president of the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA), Hopeton Henry, has endorsed the ruling People’s National Party’s (PNP’s) policies on education and all but openly urged teachers to vote for that party in general elections next Monday.

In his outgoing address to the 43rd annual JTA conference at the Sunset Jamaica Grande in Ocho Rios, St Ann Monday night, Henry said the debate around education was narrow and self-serving. He questioned why the focus was only on cost-sharing and not the major issue of transforming the education system.

“The nation’s political parties must understand that to improve the working conditions of teachers is to improve the learning conditions of students,” Henry argued.

“Teachers, as voters [you] must take a long and hard look down the years, do not be swayed by slogans and petty disaffections, but instead look at the party that has done the most for education over the years. Weigh them in the scale, use your head wisely, use your head wisely,” he repeated for impact, suggesting that the teachers used his comments “as a hint”.

The head is the ballot symbol used by the PNP.

The government, after commissioning a task force on education reform, started the process of reforming the education system with a $5-billion allocation last year.

But Henry said regardless of which party wins the elections, challenging times lay ahead for the association and urged a strengthening of the relationship between the JTA, the National Parent Teachers’ Association of Jamaica and the Joint Confederation of Trade Unions.

During the opening session of the conference, Henry expressed concern that successive governments were not paying enough attention to education. Using a current catch phrase in the election campaign, Henry declared, “The education agenda must not change course”.