Chemistry students facing failure

THE EDITOR: On Monday, parents of Forms 4, 5 and 6 students taking chemistry at the Signal Hill Secondary School in Tobago were called to an emergency meeting.

We were advised that our children may fail this subject for the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) because they have been unable to perform any lab work at the school.

Chemistry lab work is the school-based assessment which is required by CXC for successful completion of the subject and failure to meet this requirement will result in our children failing chemistry.

The issue is that the school is without a laboratory technician and a laboratory assistant, which is in violation of the Occupational Safety and Health Authority and Agency (OSHA); this was noted on its most recent inspection.

Although the Science Department head and the principal have written several letters to the Division of Education, TT Unified Teachers Association and OSHA, most recently dated September 28, there still has been no satisfactory resolution to this issue.

This situation is unacceptable and should have been resolved prior to school reopening this term. I am pleading with the relevant authorities to expedite the resolution of this issue before the CXC monitors arrive to review our students’ work.

As a concerned mother, it is imperative that my son does well in his subjects and have a better future than my own.

KAREN HUNTER via e-mail

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