Brown Burke calls on Government to put more thought into education
KINGSTON, Jamaica – Shadow Minister of Education and Training, Dr Angela Brown Burke, says the Government’s stance on school reopening ignores the socio-economic climate within which Jamaicans now operate.
Brown Burke says she has taken note of a statement by Minister of Education Fayval Williams last night regarding the reopening of schools for January, but is concerned that the minister’s statement calling on parents to do their part in ensuring children are learning, “does not take sufficient account of the economic hardship and the psychological stress faced by many of our parents”.
“The Opposition is calling on the Government of Jamaica to identify and implement measures to make that burden lighter,” said Brown Burke.
She said she is aware that parents of students preparing for Primary Exit Profile exams have welcomed the plans outlined to support their grade six students, but she notes that key areas of concern for the remaining cohorts have not been similarly addressed.
“After almost a year of trying to come to terms with educating our students in the context of a pandemic, data is indicating that significant learning loss has occurred. This is particularly evident among the grade 11 cohort, where a sharp decline in registration of students to sit the CSEC examinations has been reported,” she said.
She is thus demanding that greater attention be paid to the provision of resources and the development of new approaches to ensure that learning outcomes are realised.
“Our students need to be sufficiently prepared to progress along their academic journey, and so I urge the Government to gather all the lessons learned from the pandemic and use them to inform the changes needed for an improved education sector,” Brown Burke said.