KINGSTON, Jamaica— Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Fayval Williams, says students should not be denied permission to join the Sixth Form Pathways Programme because of a lack of physical accommodation.

The minister was addressing stakeholders at a virtual town hall meeting held on last Thursday.

“If there isn’t a space at the school, then the school needs to help the student to begin the programme at a tertiary institution because they would have been mapped, aligned, and they would have known which tertiary institutions they are partnering with,” she said.

She noted that all secondary schools are facilitating the newly installed Sixth-Form Pathways programme, in partnership with 24 private and 10 public tertiary institutions.

Williams said while she understands that some schools are physically limited, she is encouraging all “secondary schools to have a blended approach, so they can accommodate students in the online world, do the rotations [and] give students the chance to be a part of the school they grew up in.

 “So it should not be a case where a student goes to their high school and they are told, ‘we don’t know, we don’t have space for you’. That should not be the case, and I’m saying to parents, if they tell you that, please let us know,” she advised.

Meanwhile, Williams also added that any student who completes grade 11 is entitled to be admitted to the respective school’s Sixth-Form Pathways programme.

“We’ve also made provisions for students who may have dropped out of school, prior to grade 11, once they meet the age requirement and the necessary assessments are done to determine the best choice for them,” she noted.

She said all students under 18 years old and those who do not attain the age of 18 years on August 31 for the year they seek admission, are eligible for the programme.

“When students are being admitted to the programme, consideration must be given to prior learning requirements of each pathway, the student’s aptitude, interests, competence, qualification and personal preference,” she stated.

To gain admission to the programme, parents are encouraged to visit the student’s high school to begin the process.