I have reached a stage in my life where very little upsets me but this statement pissed me off. Here is the Minister of Education, the de facto Deputy Prime Minister of Barbados, publicly admitting that he is powerless to put teachers at Alexandra School to teach my daughter!
I purposely did not write this article immediately after reading this comment but forced myself to wait until today , Errol Barrow Day, in the hope that time would allow me to see the situation in a different perspective. I was hoping that the PTA would disclose the substance of the meeting held with Mr. Jones and that some resolution would have been in sight by the start of classes on Monday. However, instead I received the following letter from the president of the PTA in an email on Saturday, 21 January at 6:34 pm.
Dear Parents & Guardians
In the last 24 hours, we have received a large number of emails relating to the Executive meeting with the Officials of the Ministry of Education and there seems to be much dissatisfaction over the lack of details given. As a responsible body chosen to represent you, we are sure that you would wish that we would respect any accepted protocols related to such meetings with the representative groups involved in this matter. Any such breach could result in an immediate halt in the type of reception which we have received to date.
After a meeting at which the Ministry of Education considered several positive proposals put forward by The PTA Executive, many encouraging decisions, which would place our children back in a ‘classroom teaching’ setting, were made. However, as with most matters of such a serious nature, the Ministry requested that we give them a short but reasonable period of time to prove their good faith by putting measures in place to accommodate our requests. In the interim, we agreed not to disclose any matters that had been decided at the said meeting and as such we are unable to provide you with any further details as this may impact on the implementation of any of the said measures that were decided upon.
We are also sure that you are aware that the Hon. Prime Minister of Barbados met with the BSTU and the Minister of Education met with BAPPS yesterday. These meetings are in line with the objectives that we are trying to achieve - the teaching of all students in a class environment on or before Wednesday this week. We have been promised by the Officials of the Ministry of Education that firm decisions will be made by Tuesday latest.
We sincerely hope that this would give you a clearer understanding that we have no choice but to wait until the Government's position is made clear within the next 72 hours.
We encourage you as parents to continue to stand together on this matter and to retain your passion for the mandatory education/teaching of our children in a classroom setting. We are unchanged in our resolve to stand shoulder to shoulder on this but we plead with you to respect the protocol of information distribution. Should our requests prove to have fallen on deaf ears, we will resort to our earlier plans of picketing and anything else which is necessary to achieve our goals on behalf of our children.
We encourage persons to forward the information to any parent not copied in this email.
Please note that the next general meeting of the parent body will be held either Tuesday or Wednesday depending on when we have received correspondence from the Ministry. We shall provide confirmation of the date, time and venue using the media, email and telephone.
Thank you.
Regards
Carl Benskin
PTA President
I have all respect for Mr. Benskin and his expediency in this matter but I am still pissed off! This Government to date has not impressed upon the people of Barbados that they are particularly adept at making the tough decisions and taking decisive action. If it was concerning a less important issue than the futures of the over 800 students at Alexandra School, I, like Mr. Benskin, would take the diplomatic approach and say let's wait and see what they do. Maybe just maybe, Mr. Jones and Mr. Stuart will, "grow a pair", between them and bring an end to this travesty. However, history teaches to be wary of politicians and their promises.
This situation has gone beyond the realms of diplomacy. A case must be stated for decisive action to be taken now. While it was Mr. Jones's comment that was the proverbial "straw that broke the camel's back", the thing that really got my blood boiling was an issue brought to my attention by my daughter, a student of Alexandra. She showed me some comments that were made on Facebook by a member of the current teaching staff at Alexandra, in response to comments by a student. This has further incensed the already frustrated student body.
Please judge for yourself. (Lets hope she is not an English Teacher!)
<http://www.facebook.com/#>
Debra Springer-Bryan <http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1007903941> What a shameful thing to do. Shoot all ya nasty arrows at ya teachers but look at the ones pointing back at u. Call out the students who skip classes, call out the students who refuse to submit home work, call out the students who cuss teachers, call out the students ............ I have been teaching long and know the same people who help ya up do not help ya down. These same students will say to a teacher today that this teacher does this and the next and in the next breath say the same thing about the same teacher they were complaining to. What goes around comes around. We all have short comings and they complain to us about ALL. Encourage them to do right but be careful how u do it. Where do teachers assemble and where do students assemble? Examine facts, take your position but do it right. I always say to my students have a voice but when u step on the rude side i will side step. U do not have to like me the person but u should respect me the person.
about an hour ago · LikeUnlike
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<http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1007903941>
<http://www.facebook.com/#>
Debra Springer-Bryan <http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1007903941> When that student wrote his article i hope that ALL teachers should note that although he gave some praise to those who are still at school, he included them in all his NASTY remarks becuase there are some who we know he also mean who are still at the school. Since students are so good to write (i a m very happy to c this) go and read the article again. Stop letting someone attach your name to what they have written. I hope that when debates start we are not straved for students. Do not ever bite off the hand that feeds u. Ask this 1 question. Who brought the students into this? Who are the ones using the students to rally the cause? I have no plan in using Fb to trash and scandalise any person name. However, some past students have been using BB to rally the cause but who do u call and which teachers names do u use when u try to get on the school compound and u r denied entry by who? becuase u did not make an appointment? Also the same students who r missing work have u worked on your SBA so that when teachers return they do not have to put u on a list because u have nothing to submit. Presently, only 3 English teachers are not at school and there are 7 teachers in the department with two at the top who can teach and then 2 more who have been retained in other areas in the school. Do the math. Oh, I am sorry the school is not being taught so it will not work out that English classes should be well covered.
52 minutes ago · LikeUnlike
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<http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/274698_616045656_1739041027_q.jpg>
I must ask. "Is this the kind of remarks that a teacher should be making on a forum like Facebook? Mr. Jones, do you consider this appropriate behaviour for a member of your teaching staff? Ms. Redman is this acceptable to the BSTU? Facebook is the province of the children. They live there. My daughter and her over 1500 friends, mainly from schools across the length and breath of Barbados, were not amused. "Do not ever bite off the hand that feed u?". Are you serious Debra? Saying that to your students? My daughter, and I would assume, other Alexandra students take this as an open threat to keep their mouths shut or be victimized by the teachers when they return to school.
Debra, you have the unmitigated gall to ask who brought the students into this? I will not dignify the asininity of that question with a comment.
It is scary to know that you, "have been teaching long." (Is that a new subject?)
Mr. Jones, as a parent I am not comfortable with a teacher, (whose salary is paid by my tax dollars), making veiled threats to students and especially not to my child! I await whatever actions you decide to take before Wednesday this week but I will like to put you on notice that I am not comfortable with the teachers that are currently on strike being allowed to return to Alexandra to be responsible for my daughter's education and I expect some action to be taken against the likes of Debra Springer-Bryan. Enough said for now.
The BSTU has consistently demonstrated that they are willing to support any action of a member of their union regardless of the levels of incompetence or ineptitude shown. However, it has been alleged a striking member of the teaching staff at Alexandra has taken the opportunity of the ongoing strike to attend classes at the Erdiston Teachers Training College. Ms. Redman, please tell me that this is not so!
In the words of my daughter, "That is a FAIL!! We are not being taught but she is going back to school. They really don't care nothing about us!"
Is this the kind of behaviour that the BSTU condones?
Mr. Jones, if you are aware of the comments of a teacher on Facebook and the actions of a teacher neglecting her students to further her own education, how in the name of all that is right and decent can you tell me that you do not know when this impasse will end?
YOU NEED TO END IT NOW!
Following the tennis game of back and forth between you and the Prime Minister is giving the country a stiff neck. You were elected to represent the people's interest and we the people demand action NOW!
Get new teachers into Alexandra! Even if you have to pull them from other schools, DO IT NOW! Forget the protocols and the red tape. Take action now and deal with the fallout later. It is not like Governments in this country do not have a history of taken action first and enacting legislation to legitimize their activities later.
Secondly, deal with the delinquent teachers. I honestly believe that it is not in the best interest of the students of Alexandra to have the teachers currently off the job return to that school. However, I will wait until after Wednesday next week to comment further.
In every term of office there is an incident, the handling of which determines how that administration is judged in the eyes of the public.This is it for Mr. Stuart's team. We eagerly await Tuesday or Wednesday next week. I leave you with this quote:-
We are also sure that you are aware that the Hon. Prime Minister of Barbados met with the BSTU and the Minister of Education met with BAPPS yesterday. These meetings are in line with the objectives that we are trying to achieve - the teaching of all students in a class environment on or before Wednesday this week. We have been promised by the Officials of the Ministry of Education that firm decisions will be made by Tuesday latest.
We sincerely hope that this would give you a clearer understanding that we have no choice but to wait until the Government's position is made clear within the next 72 hours.
We encourage you as parents to continue to stand together on this matter and to retain your passion for the mandatory education/teaching of our children in a classroom setting. We are unchanged in our resolve to stand shoulder to shoulder on this but we plead with you to respect the protocol of information distribution. Should our requests prove to have fallen on deaf ears, we will resort to our earlier plans of picketing and anything else which is necessary to achieve our goals on behalf of our children.
We encourage persons to forward the information to any parent not copied in this email.
Please note that the next general meeting of the parent body will be held either Tuesday or Wednesday depending on when we have received correspondence from the Ministry. We shall provide confirmation of the date, time and venue using the media, email and telephone.
Thank you.
Regards
Carl Benskin
PTA President
I have all respect for Mr. Benskin and his expediency in this matter but I am still pissed off! This Government to date has not impressed upon the people of Barbados that they are particularly adept at making the tough decisions and taking decisive action. If it was concerning a less important issue than the futures of the over 800 students at Alexandra School, I, like Mr. Benskin, would take the diplomatic approach and say let's wait and see what they do. Maybe just maybe, Mr. Jones and Mr. Stuart will, "grow a pair", between them and bring an end to this travesty. However, history teaches to be wary of politicians and their promises.
This situation has gone beyond the realms of diplomacy. A case must be stated for decisive action to be taken now. While it was Mr. Jones's comment that was the proverbial "straw that broke the camel's back", the thing that really got my blood boiling was an issue brought to my attention by my daughter, a student of Alexandra. She showed me some comments that were made on Facebook by a member of the current teaching staff at Alexandra, in response to comments by a student. This has further incensed the already frustrated student body.
Please judge for yourself. (Lets hope she is not an English Teacher!)
<http://www.facebook.com/#>
Debra Springer-Bryan <http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1007903941> What a shameful thing to do. Shoot all ya nasty arrows at ya teachers but look at the ones pointing back at u. Call out the students who skip classes, call out the students who refuse to submit home work, call out the students who cuss teachers, call out the students ............ I have been teaching long and know the same people who help ya up do not help ya down. These same students will say to a teacher today that this teacher does this and the next and in the next breath say the same thing about the same teacher they were complaining to. What goes around comes around. We all have short comings and they complain to us about ALL. Encourage them to do right but be careful how u do it. Where do teachers assemble and where do students assemble? Examine facts, take your position but do it right. I always say to my students have a voice but when u step on the rude side i will side step. U do not have to like me the person but u should respect me the person.
about an hour ago · LikeUnlike
*
<http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1007903941>
<http://www.facebook.com/#>
Debra Springer-Bryan <http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1007903941> When that student wrote his article i hope that ALL teachers should note that although he gave some praise to those who are still at school, he included them in all his NASTY remarks becuase there are some who we know he also mean who are still at the school. Since students are so good to write (i a m very happy to c this) go and read the article again. Stop letting someone attach your name to what they have written. I hope that when debates start we are not straved for students. Do not ever bite off the hand that feeds u. Ask this 1 question. Who brought the students into this? Who are the ones using the students to rally the cause? I have no plan in using Fb to trash and scandalise any person name. However, some past students have been using BB to rally the cause but who do u call and which teachers names do u use when u try to get on the school compound and u r denied entry by who? becuase u did not make an appointment? Also the same students who r missing work have u worked on your SBA so that when teachers return they do not have to put u on a list because u have nothing to submit. Presently, only 3 English teachers are not at school and there are 7 teachers in the department with two at the top who can teach and then 2 more who have been retained in other areas in the school. Do the math. Oh, I am sorry the school is not being taught so it will not work out that English classes should be well covered.
52 minutes ago · LikeUnlike
*
<http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/274698_616045656_1739041027_q.jpg>
I must ask. "Is this the kind of remarks that a teacher should be making on a forum like Facebook? Mr. Jones, do you consider this appropriate behaviour for a member of your teaching staff? Ms. Redman is this acceptable to the BSTU? Facebook is the province of the children. They live there. My daughter and her over 1500 friends, mainly from schools across the length and breath of Barbados, were not amused. "Do not ever bite off the hand that feed u?". Are you serious Debra? Saying that to your students? My daughter, and I would assume, other Alexandra students take this as an open threat to keep their mouths shut or be victimized by the teachers when they return to school.
Debra, you have the unmitigated gall to ask who brought the students into this? I will not dignify the asininity of that question with a comment.
It is scary to know that you, "have been teaching long." (Is that a new subject?)
Mr. Jones, as a parent I am not comfortable with a teacher, (whose salary is paid by my tax dollars), making veiled threats to students and especially not to my child! I await whatever actions you decide to take before Wednesday this week but I will like to put you on notice that I am not comfortable with the teachers that are currently on strike being allowed to return to Alexandra to be responsible for my daughter's education and I expect some action to be taken against the likes of Debra Springer-Bryan. Enough said for now.
The BSTU has consistently demonstrated that they are willing to support any action of a member of their union regardless of the levels of incompetence or ineptitude shown. However, it has been alleged a striking member of the teaching staff at Alexandra has taken the opportunity of the ongoing strike to attend classes at the Erdiston Teachers Training College. Ms. Redman, please tell me that this is not so!
In the words of my daughter, "That is a FAIL!! We are not being taught but she is going back to school. They really don't care nothing about us!"
Is this the kind of behaviour that the BSTU condones?
Mr. Jones, if you are aware of the comments of a teacher on Facebook and the actions of a teacher neglecting her students to further her own education, how in the name of all that is right and decent can you tell me that you do not know when this impasse will end?
YOU NEED TO END IT NOW!
Following the tennis game of back and forth between you and the Prime Minister is giving the country a stiff neck. You were elected to represent the people's interest and we the people demand action NOW!
Get new teachers into Alexandra! Even if you have to pull them from other schools, DO IT NOW! Forget the protocols and the red tape. Take action now and deal with the fallout later. It is not like Governments in this country do not have a history of taken action first and enacting legislation to legitimize their activities later.
Secondly, deal with the delinquent teachers. I honestly believe that it is not in the best interest of the students of Alexandra to have the teachers currently off the job return to that school. However, I will wait until after Wednesday next week to comment further.
In every term of office there is an incident, the handling of which determines how that administration is judged in the eyes of the public.This is it for Mr. Stuart's team. We eagerly await Tuesday or Wednesday next week. I leave you with this quote:-
"Democracy is the only system that persists in asking the powers that be whether they are the powers that ought to be." Sydney J. Harris
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