KINGSTON, Jamaica — A total of 55 Critical Incident Reports, mostly related to violence in schools, were reported as required to the Ministry of Education and Youth, between January 2022 and January 2023.

The affected schools are required to file a report within 24 hours of the critical incident through the regional offices to the Safety and Security in Schools Unit at the central ministry.

Minister of Education and Youth, Fayval Williams, provided an update on Wednesday, describing violence in schools as “the immediate threat that concerns us the most in the education sector”.

She was speaking during her contribution to the 2024/25 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives, where she also outlined the measures in place to tackle the problem.

“It is true that it (violence) has overshadowed, in a most negative way, all the efforts of our principals, our teachers, parents, students and the Ministry of Education and Youth.

“School violence is student violence that occurs on school property, on the way to or from school, on the way to or from school-sponsored events, or during school-sponsored events,” said Williams.

She lamented that it “disrupts learning and has a negative effect on students, schools and the broader communities”.

The minister stressed that it was instructive to note that the 55 critical incidents occurred at 50 different schools (15 primary and 35 high schools). Five of the schools had two critical incidents each.

These incidents range from gang violence to physical assault to robbery to break-ins at schools, and to school bus accidents. They also include alleged sexual grooming, drowning, vandalism, stabbing, attempted abduction, brawls, physical altercations between a principal and a parent, a fire and an alleged sexual assault.

“While 50 schools represent approximately five per cent of the total number of primary and secondary schools in the education sector, these incidents of violence and assaults on school property are way too frequent for a small society such as Jamaica’s where most of us know each other,” said Williams.

She told the House that violence in schools was not just the responsibility of the principal, the teachers and the ministry to solve.

The minister accepted that the education sector has a big role to play but said it is the treatment that our children receive at home and in their communities that will determine their state of mind when they arrive at school.

“It is the very loud music and selectors screaming at the top of their voices until the wee hours of the morning during a school night in many communities that determine if our children arrive at school fully rested or simply exhausted from lack of sleep and just want to put their heads on the desk.

“It is the lewd lyrics being broadcast in some of the public passenger vehicles that our students have to travel in to get to school that will determine if they arrive at school in a calm spirit or sexually charged.

“Add to this, the access to weapons and drugs and the fact that many of our children are witnessing violent acts in their homes and within their communities and it is not difficult to understand that it does not take much to spark school violence,” Williams said.

“The responsibility lies with all of us, as Jamaicans. We all have a part to play in eradicating incidents of school violence,” she beseeched.

Williams said given that there are 190 school days in the school year, 55 critical incidents at our schools equate to a critical incident happening somewhere in the education sector every 3.5 school days. “This is utter madness,” she remarked.

She outlined the prevention efforts to deal with the problem including:

• A Safety and Security Policy which outlines how to implement physical security measures such as searches of students’ school bags,  organising training programmes for school personnel to recognise warning signs and intervene effectively, counselling at-risk individuals, developing crisis and emergency plans, assigning roles for students, parents, and the community, and addressing and resolving conflicts in a constructive manner and
• School Resource Officers (SROs) who are on call to conduct searches if requested, conduct regular school visits and motorised patrols in the general school environs before and after school hours, and regular patrols in the transport  town centres to prevent students loitering during school hours.

The SROs are also on call to conduct safety audits and reports, investigate critical incidents, organise training session for staff and students, lead motivational talks, gang prevention intervention activities and mentorship programmes.

The minister also outlined a raft of behavioural support services in schools to help address the problem.