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Feb 08, 2015 News
The Princeville School, located in an Amerindian community seven miles outside Mahdia, Region Eight, has for the past week been the center of peaceful protest action.
Among the demonstrators and armed with placards are frustrated parents, guardians and students who persevered in registering their disappointment with the services offered to their children who attend the school.
The protestors have become extremely frustrated with the situation at the school which currently has one teacher, assigned to all classes from Nursery, Level One to Primary, Grade Six.
“One teacher and eight classes, how is that possible?” was one of the signs brandished by protestors as they lobbied the school.
Speaking on the issue, Executive Member of the Education Committee of the Region Democratic Council (RDC), Wayne Robinson, said that the teacher, Sherlock Ruffeno, has been the only teacher at the school for the past five years.
Robinson told this publication that it is “impossible for one teacher to be able to properly administer education to eight sets of students, amounting to 67, enrolled at the institution.”
He told Kaieteur News that the school once had five teachers but over the years they left, leaving Ruffeno to control the school population. Despite numerous reports being made to the relevant authorities since the problem began, nothing has been done and the students continue to suffer.
Robinson, a trained teacher himself, admitted, “There is no way I could have managed such a job.” He went on to say that the teacher is left to play role of Head teacher and all other administrative posts for the school.”
It is against that backdrop that the parents, he reported, have become frustrated with the stories their children have shared over the past years. He said “We didn’t do anything today; Sir did busy,” has become commonplace report among the children.
“If the teacher sick then there is no school; if there is a Head teacher meeting again no school because he is the only one doing everything. For a while, the school was closed every Friday because he (Sir Ruffeno) was on an upgrading programme so that he can enter Teachers’ College,” Robinson told this publication.
He said the protestors are demanding that the Ministry of Education (MOE) deploy at least two other trained teachers to the institution.
Further, they are also calling for the removal of the Regional Education Officer (REDO), Rabindra Singh, who they claim “has no time for Education since he is involved in a lot of political work.”
Continuing, the educator said that Region Eight currently has two District Education Officers; one functioning in the North Pakaraimas District covering 21 schools and another in the Mahdia District, overlooking nine.
Robinson said that there is no Regional Welfare Officer so when matters of that nature arise, there is no one to report to.
To make matters worse, the teacher told this publication that displeasure also stems from the fact that there is no Probation Officer in the Region.
According to Robinson, persons have been appointed in the past but due to the want of proper accommodation, they have abandoned the post.
In this light, requests were made to the Ministry of Education to have the building upgraded which includes repainting and more furniture. He described the area where the persons are normally kept as extremely unwelcoming.
Robinson emphasised that all the matters continuously reported to the REDO have borne no fruit. The educator said the protests will continue until their demands are met.
(Sunita Samaroo)
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