EDITORIAL – Maintenance of schools vital

WE note with interest that the maintenance of schools has become the latest political issue.

That is regrettable, because the children and teachers are the ones who suffer from school interruptions or illnesses while politicians seek to point fingers at one another.

But if the word is accountability, then we as a country should look at the Ministry which is responsible for the schools. What was not being done? What programmes were in place? If these programs failed, then what is being done to fix these issues going forward to minimise school disruptions?

Over 20 schools opened late in September 2019, yet the answer on the reason was woefully unacceptable. What systems are in place with regards to the sourcing of contractors and also the supervision of the works which are done? Depending on the works being done, all civil works should be completed well in advance of the start of the school year and if not then some level of accountability must take place.
Cleaning of rooms, dealing with rodents, cleaning the environs and other matters should really be dealt with during the almost three month school times. If a project unit in the Ministry has been designated to address these concerns at schools, then a time frame should be determined to see how long works should take. That timeframe should be agreed to, even if some schools can close a week or so earlier for summer break to allow for works to be done.

We witnessed primary and secondary schools being impacted with late opening last September and Government must work to ensure that this does not happen. But this does not mean that Government can and should do it alone. There must be constructive dialogue between the relevant parties involved with the school structure.

The school plant and the management of it falls to respective Boards of Management within the secondary school system, especially. Therefore concerns and issues related to essential upgrades, repairs and protection of the environmental conditions must go through the relevant chains of command. Issues related to ageing buildings and their impacts on students, teachers and other critical staff must not be a random occurrence, since vigilance must take place to ensure that minor problems do not escalate into serious challenges which will ultimately end up costing the taxpayers more money to solve.

We must look at where the problems are taking place. Older school plants tend to have the most serious problems. Limestone buildings or predominantly board structures will be impacted over time. In tropical conditions, high temperatures and heavy rainfall can cause a natural deterioration in conditions. A logical shift to either prefab buildings or brick structures might be a long-term objective.

Then add the issue of environmental conditions. Activities surrounding school plants have an impact. The issue of the Louis Lynch Secondary, plus the recent concerns at L.T. Gay Primary or Luther Thorne should showcase how actions such as rubbish burning or the prevalence of cow-itch can cause serious distress at school. Improper disposal of chemicals is also a concern.

The Ministry of Education and Vocational Training is an expansive Ministry. From primary to secondary school, to tertiary education, funding all of these necessary upgrades and maintenance is expensive. The trick could be for the Ministry to engage old scholars and Parent Teachers Associations to help with some of the issues which schools encounter and leave the major structural works to the Ministry itself. That way the burden is shared and our schools remain open as community beacons of learning and reduce the amount of crucial times when these schools are closed.

In 2020, we should be looking at removing the embarrassment of late starts in schools, due to poor execution or remedial works.