JAMAICA-EDUCATION: Students Left Out in the Cold

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Charmaine Clarke

KINGSTON, Apr 9 1997 (IPS) - The recent closure of one of Jamaica’s privately-run schools in western Jamaica has highlighted the absence of legislation to protect students attending these institutions.

Some 120 students of the Institute of Professional Studies (IPS), an independently operated business school in Montego Bay, are now wondering if they will be able to sit examinations this year, or if the money invested in their education has gone up in smoke.

The students were sitting in their classrooms one day when, without warning they were ushered out after being told that the operator of the institution was being evicted.

Unknown to the students the operator of the school, Joseph Bonsu had been given at least one year’s notice to vacate the rented premises he had occupied for some five years, but he failed to notify the students.

Now the students and their parents have been left to pick up the pieces as they try to figure out what their next step should be.

But this is not the first time that this independent school, along with others in the tourism town of Montego Bay, has run into problems. In the past there have been reports of students’ examination fees remaining unpaid after they had been handed over to school officials. And the sad thing about all this, observers, say is that the Ministry of Education seems powerless to help.

Under existing legislation, students of independent schools are at the mercy of those operating these establishments, as there is no regulation in place to provide them with redress if these institutions fold.

In addition, the number of school days are determined solely by the operator, as there is no legislation that specifically addresses this area.

The existing law sets out basic requirements for registration and supervision of independent schools, but in the event of closure, students have to rely on the goodwill of the operators.

“The law does not speak to closure,” says Freda Jones, registrar for independent schools in the Ministry of Education. She adds, however, that steps are being taken to implement new legislation that will correct these deficiencies.

The new code will require independent schools to provide students with at least 190 school days for the year. This will bring independent schools in line with the number of school days required of public institutions.

But the proposed regulation is little comfort to students presently enrolled in the 240 independent schools island-wide as these proposals could take years before they become law.

According to the Ministry of Education, an independent school is an institution at which at least 20 students between the ages of eight and 19 are enrolled and which does not fall into the public school category.

Under the law, all such schools must be registered in accordance with the Education Act of 1965. But schools are permitted to begin operating before they are registered. Any operator who wishes to establish a school is given a one-year provisional registration.

During that time, the facilities are inspected, and recommendations are made to ensure that the school fulfills all the requirements.

For an institution to be registered, the operators are required to inform the Ministry of Education of the courses they propose to offer, indicate the location of the school and show that the facilities are adequate.

In addition, the qualifications of the teachers employed must be verified.

But some directors of independent schools have questioned the wisdom of allowing operators to conduct classes without proof that they are capable of providing adequate service and education.

“One would assume that they would examine a place before (registering it), to ensure that it has met the requirements before the school starts up,” says one source who requested anonymity. “But as it stands now, they start up then the examiners go in.”

But according to Jones there is little else that can be done about that situation. “We can’t judge them on paper. We have to let them set up,” she says.

Jones says there is no way to ascertain if the steps outlined by the operator on paper are in fact what will be implemented.

Being registered does not guarantee that the school is a solid institution and those who enrol in them should always remember that.

“Private schools are a business,” says Jones. “and like any other business, they can fold.”