Dear Editor,

The country’s education system has forcibly removed me from the bars of silence to expose the fallacy of education the nation’s children are being subjected to.

Too long we echo the statement “education is the key to success” unaware of the abstruse shoulders on which education stands. Yes, I agree the driving force behind success is in fact education, but in the obscurity of such events, education is being powered by money. Therefore, handed to Jamaican students is an ultimatum: pay to receive a ‘top notch’ teaching style or suffer in the classroom. Such practices are consummated at the grass-roots level, exploiting even the youngest of students their right to an education.

The idea of extra lessons has been embraced by us because we want the best for them. Understanding that some children learn at a slower pace than others, extra lessons offered them extra time to be on par with the rest of the class and to fully understand what is being taught. Extra lessons carry a small fee, which is more than acceptable, as these teachers are going beyond the call of duty to ensure the children’s future, the nation’s future, is educationally secured.

The reasoning behind extra lessons’ introduction into schools, however, has been obliterated. They are now being used primarily as money-making opportunities by teachers. Parents are being informed that what is taught in extra lessons will not be discussed in regular classes. Many parents are put at a disadvantage; especially those parents who are already struggling to find the regular fee and are now given the task to find even more money to pay, or helplessly watch their children fall behind in the classroom.

One teacher was asked why she was trying to turn extra lessons into a compulsory class and her response was that there is not enough time to cover the topics during the regular school day. Noting this response is from a grade one teacher, it makes one question the legitimacy of such a response. How did teachers in time past incorporate all the lessons and garner passes without extra lessons? Today, extra lessons are merely an extra money classes for teachers. This needs to be evaluated.

Tashani Durrant

tashani95@live.com