Publish list of schol winners

THE EDITOR: As I understand it, the Ministry of Education made a decision to not publish the names of national scholarship winners starting in 2018. I also heard that this decision was taken because of a request by “some” parents. If this is indeed true, then it is a very sad situation.

Winning a national scholarship requires hard work, dedication and sacrifice, both on the part of the student and his/her parents. These are qualities which should be celebrated.

It is an achievement which can instil pride to a family, a school, a community. So for anyone to suppress that feeling, something must be fundamentally wrong with their thinking.

I am not certain which parent would not want the public to know of their child’s wonderful achievement. I also can’t fathom how a few parents can dictate to the ministry whether to publish the results in full or not. I doubt that the ministry sought an opinion from all four hundred parents before coming to such a horrible decision.

It is to be noted that a couple of schools have (on social media) hailed their successful students. This I commend and hope that others will follow suit so that the public can share in the joy of these deserving winners.

A national scholarship is no joking matter and is not to be trifled with. It is an accomplishment worthy of national prominence. So why the decision not to publish? If the ministry was willing to share the names of the top two performers in the country, why not share all? Did they seek special permission from the parents of these two top students? Do they notice how proud these parents/children are every year? Publish the list.

CARLYLE SINGH

Former teacher