'Drop off, pick up children on time'

UPDATE:

While teachers and principals are expected to start work at a particular time, the National Parent Teachers Association (NPTA) and the National Primary School Principals’ Association (NPSPA), today called on parents nationwide to be responsible when dropping off and picking up their children.

Speaking at a press conference at Education Towers, Abercromby Street, PoS, president of the NPSPA Lance Mottley said under the Education Act, principals are responsible for the safety and security of all students.

However, Mottley said, while the documents seem to suggest such responsibilities being broad and unlimited, that kind of thinking is unreasonable.

He said recently at St Andrew’s Anglican School in Tobago, after careful engagement with all stakeholders to ensure the safety and security of all children, a principal is now facing a lot of flak from some authorities.

Teachers and principals, he said, “would have taken some actions — that they would not be opening the school gates by 7.30 am.

It is important for parents to be better informed and make better decisions in dropping off and picking up their children.

“Because of that incident, we feel that the time is now right for us to engage the national public with respect to the working hours of teachers and principals in primary schools.

Primary school teachers are expected to pick up official duties at 8.30 am. There is a lunch break, and they pick up official duties at 12.30 and finish work at 3 pm.”

Mottley said principals are cognisant of the pressures on parents to get to their own jobs on time and empathise with the reality, and are willing to come to a workable arrangement, engaging all stakeholders, but without infringing on the rights of teachers.

He said in the long term, there must be real solutions to the growing issue of supervision for students before school starts, during the lunch period and after school. President of NPTA Raffiena Ali-Boodoosingh said teachers and principals have serious concerns with the numerous incidents happening to students at schools in the absence of principals and teachers who may not be there because of their own official work hours.

She said teachers and principals over the years have been quite accommodating by providing early supervision during the early arrivals and late departure of students.

ORIGINAL STORY:

While teachers and principals are expected to start work at a particular time, the National Parent Teachers Association (NPTA) and the National Primary School Principals' Association (NPSPA), today called on parents nationwide to be responsible when dropping off and picking up their children.

Speaking at a press conference at Education Towers, Abercromby Street, PoS, president of the NPSPA Lance Mottley said under the Education Act, principals are responsible for the safety and security of all students.

However, Mottley said, while the documents seem to suggest such responsibilities being broad and unlimited, that kind of thinking is unreasonable.

He said recently at St Andrew's Anglican School in Tobago, after careful engagement with all stakeholders to ensure the safety and security of all children, a principal is now facing a lot of flak from some authorities.

Teachers and principals, he said, "would have taken some actions – that they would not be opening the school gates by 7.30 am. It is important for parents to be better informed and make better decisions in dropping off and picking up their children."