By Damion Mitchell, Staff ReporterTHE JAMAICA Teachers' Association (JTA), is lobbying the government to employ more 'specialist teachers', particularly for Art and Craft, Music and Physical Education in primary schools.
This is among the list of items being negotiated for the 2002-2004 contract.
At a recent Manchester Principals' Association (MPA) Awards luncheon, President of the organisation, Travert Spence made a call for the JTA to give its full support in lobbying the Ministry of Education to make it mandatory for teachers trained physical education and music to be employed within the primary school system.
According to him, the athletic and performing arts skills of many students were underdeveloped because of the lack, adequate training at the primary level. Mr. Spence who is also principal of the Bethabara Primary and Junior High School, said that in as much as educators who were trained in primary education were exposed to all the various disciplines including music and athletics, these areas deserved much more attention. It's also his belief that intense training for students at the primary level in disciplines such as music and physical education would go a far way in producing more rounded students as well as preparing those who wished to follow through at the secondary level.
Principal of the Nazareth All-Age School, Garth Smith shared a similar position. He said primary schools without specialist teachers were being "robbed" in more ways than one as their students were not exposed to intense training in the respective disciplines.
When The Gleaner contacted the office of Mr. Wesley Barrett, Chief Education Officer at the Ministry of Education for comment on the matter, he was said to be in a meeting. The call was referred to three other departments of the ministry however, the officers declined to comment saying the specialist teachers issue was not related to their departments.
