NPTA to parents: Speak to children about vandalism

The new head of the National Parent Teachers Association (NPTA) Raffiena Ali-Boodoosingh is appealing to parents to speak to their children about vandalising school property.

Contacted yesterday, Ali-Boodoosingh said when students vandalise schools and their property, the government has to spend money to on repairs, and some schools have to close their doors.

Ali-Boodoosingh said, on Wednesday the NPTA and other stakeholders met Education Minister Anthony Garcia and raised several issues on the way forward for 2018.

She said coming out of the meeting the NPTA was told 43 schools had repairs done over the Christmas season through the vacation repair programme. Out of the 43 schools which needed repairs, six were not completed.

“It was a very fruitful meeting. The Minister of Education identified the schools they did repairs on and he has reported the required work was completed on most of the schools. He brought it to our attention and we are very cognisant of the fact that they are going through a financial constraint.

“The minister said there are schools which need more repairs than others, for example the Princes Town East Secondary. That school requires a lot of money to fix. The school is totally non-functional. This was one of the schools we have been discussing with the ministry for quite a while,” she said.

Ali-Boodoosingh said the NPTA was told repairs will continue on the few unfinished schools, and all parties agreed to do whatever was in their power to ensure the students were not denied their basic right to education, and to minimise loss of teaching and learning time.

She said overall, with all NPTA’s plans for the new school term, the ministry has agreed to partner with the association.

Ali-Boodoosingh said the NPTA also raised the issue of the cell phone policy at schools, the continued reduction in acts of indiscipline and violence and the equitable distribution of resources for students such as lunches and textbooks to ensure that the current wastage is mitigated.

“We also called for a strengthened relationship between the NPTA and the ministry to ensure involvement in decision-making. The NPTA has asked to be involved in all planned activities of the ministry so that parents can be represented.

“Discussions with the NPTA will take place again before the end of the school term, continuing with the ministry’s commitment to enhance stakeholder engagement for 2018 and beyond,” she said.