BROWN’S TOWN, St Ann – Determined not to allow the violence seen in some schools last year to once again define this academic term, Education Minister Fayval has urged students, teachers and parents to work together to make positive changes.

“I know that when you see the things in social media we tend to think that is representative of the education sector; but I am here to say it is not. Those videos of children fighting, it is not representative of the education sector,” she said.

Williams was speaking at a recent event at St Hilda’s Diocesan High School in St Ann to mark the launch of the academic year. The theme for this year is ‘Education, transformation, enabling, and maximising, students, talents, and abilities’.

The education minister urged those gathered to play their role in “forging a brighter future for Jamaica through education transformation”.

“Let us embrace TREND and its vision for The transformation of education for national development. Let us commit to enabling and maximising the talents and abilities of every Jamaican student. I know that together we can build a stronger, more inclusive and prosperous Jamaica, where every child’s potential is unlocked and no talent is left undiscovered,” she said.

“I know that 99.9 per cent of you wake up every day, very early, to take the bus or whatever transportation you have to take, or walk and you get to school. You get back home and you work because you have a purpose in mind, and we’re here to highlight what is good about the education sector,” she added.

She contrasted that approach to scenes of violence that made their way onto social media last year. In one incident, a teacher at a Clarendon school was caught on camera engaged in a tussle with a student. In another incident, in April, two students of Tarrant High School had to be rushed to hospital after they were involved in a fight at the institution.

In her call for collaboration in the transformation taking place, the education minister stressed the Government’s commitment to improving the infrastructure and technology within schools.

“If you read the education transformation report, which was produced by the commission that the prime minister put together to study the education sector, a major pillar of change, a major pillar of transformation is infrastructure and technology in our schools,” said Williams.

“They need to be modernised or brought up to speed with the 21st-century school. We’re talking about STEM education and so we’re on an ambitious journey to invest more in the infrastructure and the technology over schools. It is going to take us some time to do because it’s physical work that you have to do. There is planning there is designing, but we are committed,” she promised.

During the ceremony, a number of schools from across the country showcased their innovative abilities.

Students of Grange Hill High presented Cocosolve, a machine that easily grinds coconuts while a team from Jamaica College showed off their robot Jackfruit, which nimbly stacked plastic containers onto a pole.