- Carlington Wilmot and Herbert McKennis/Freelance Photographers
At left, Marlie Hill Primary School in Manchester. At right, Donkeys frequently invade the compound at the Daniel Town Basic School, owing to the lack of a perimeter fence.
Glenda Anderson, Staff Reporter
FESTERING DISCONTENT among residents and parents over the poor performance of students of Marlie Hill Primary School in Manchester is threatening to spill over into the new school year.
In fact, threats by some parents to pull their students from the school and 'bus' them to nearby schools, forcing a closure of the school has prompted a request for the intervention of the Ministry of Education.
While The Sunday Gleaner was unable to contact regional officer, Reuben Gray, Principal Harvey Copeland of the south Manchester school confirmed that the testy situation had prompted a meeting with the Ministry, Board officials and other concerned persons scheduled for Tuesday.
Residents complain that Marlie Hill Primary School has been in decline for several years with a chronic record of poor examination passes, and there are now concerns of a permanent closure by the Education Ministry.
However, Edwin Thomas, information officer at the Ministry's head office in Kingston said while he was unaware of the situation it was not the Ministry's policy to close schools. According to Ministry of Education school profiles, Marlie Hill is located in a 'remote rural' zone, with an enrollment of 94 students.
The parents say the problem has been aggravated by the continued non-performance of students and what they have pointed to as a free fall in student attendance.
One parent, Kate Reid, explained that five years ago she pulled her child out from Grade Two after her request for a closer attention to the needs of her daughter was not met.
HOLDING BACK
"She was doing really well from basic school, brilliant work, so she was really ready for Grade Two. But when she went to big school, they were still giving her work that she did in basic school, I realised that they were holding back the child. Instead of going forward she was now going backward, so I spoke to the teacher, twice, but she did nothing, so I moved her," she said. "I really don't like to have to send my child so far away, because Marlie Hill is just a run down the hill, and for it to be so near and have to send the child so far away to school. But something is wrong there."
Estraya Segree, head teacher of the infant school in the area, also expressed fears of a dwindling stream.
She said the school which usually channels upwards of 15 students to the primary school each year, is bracing itself for reduced numbers.
"I don't' know how many of the younger ones will be coming back, and less than half of what we normally get (about six) are due to come," she said.
"The number there (Primary School) will be low because the area doesn't have the children and where they use to come they will now follow older brothers and sisters to other schools because parents push their children to schools with more passes. Of approximately 15 students at the infant department, fewer than half are registered at the primary school.
But older residents of the area say the present administration had inherited the problems and history of a failing school.
NOTHING HAPPENING
"There was a period of maybe about 20 years, in the '70s to '80s, when there was nothing happening for Marlie Hill, the school got no passes at all, no scholarships nothing," one former student said.
"Then many, many years later one person got a half scholarship, and another year one boy got a full scholarship. It was so dramatic that they gave him the bell and he ran around the whole schoolyard ringing the bell, so that everybody would know that something extra special had happened there because it was so unusual," she said.
Former school board chairman, Walsworth Virtue, confirmed that even during his tenure (1979-1991) there had been rising concerns from parents about the school's performance.
"The attendance had been falling for years. The attention started though when parents were getting children with scholarships from other schools like Woodlands and New Broughton. Parents were concerned that children were not passing or getting scholarships from Marlie Hill, and at that time there were no secondary schools around to absorb the children, and if the students didn't get through with the examinations they'd leave school when they got to a certain age 'age up'."
IMPROVEMENT
He said however that there had been recent improvements.
"During Mr. Copeland's time it steadied. The very first year we got about four or six Common Entrance passes, and up to 2001 the results were reasonable."
Mr. Copeland has, however, dismissed the suggestion of poor performance among students being the reason for them not being placed in schools with 'good passes'.
He said that on the contrary parents had been insistent on their children being sent to schools within nearby communities which were more cost-effective.
"It's the parents choice. There was one year when we had about five names for which the Ministry sent back applications because the first, second and third choices were Cross Keys. In most cases the first choice is Cross Keys so they are sent there."
He said the meeting's outcome will determine the extent of the parents' concerns as well as the next step for the administration.
... Dilemma in Daniel Town
Erica James-King, Staff Reporter
WESTERN BUREAU:
A WEEK before the start of the 2003/04 school year and a controversy, brewing over an improvement project for Daniel Town Basic School in Trelawny, remains far from resolved.
The Daniel Town Citizens Association and the Trelawny Parish Council have been at loggerheads over the last three months, and the conflict threatens to disrupt the lives of the students when school reopens.
So far, the improvement work has been aborted, while citizens and the works department of the Parish Council trade charges. At the heart of the dispute is a disagreement between the two groups over which modus operandi to pursue in erecting a perimeter fence at the school, and in creating a recreational area for the students.
The dispute stems from the fact that an upgrading exercise for the school grounds of the Daniel Town Basic School was identified as the parish project for Trelawny on Labour Day this year. The residents are claiming that the $100,000 allocated for the project has been spent without the desired objectives being met. However, the Parish Council has rejected the charges.
"What happen to the money I want to know, because school soon open and the children will not have a play area, yet we were promised that the material for the play area would be in place," an animated Blossom Morgan complained to The Sunday Gleaner. "A swing set, and monkey bars (cross-bars) were promised, but only the frame for hanging the swing we got from the Parish Council."
The residents have also complained that the community was never given enough material by the Parish Council to create the play area, and they also contend that they are being told to use inferior material in constructing the perimeter fence.
"Three weeks ago, I had a talk with the Superintendent (of works) and he was saying the money granted was not enough to complete it. We also want to know, why only the marl and a few bags of cement were given to us to construct the play area," said Judith Scott, principal of the basic school.
"In the original plan, building blocks, sand, top soil was also to be used to level off the school ground and create a play area. Where are the swings and slides that were also promised?"
She said the community is committed to working on the project, but they feel the Parish Council has reneged on its promises to them.
"On Labour day, barbed wire was dropped off at the school by council representatives, but the parents were opposed to the barbed wire, pointing to the dangers it would pose to the infants."
She said some days later, "diamond fencing wire" was dropped off at the school, in keeping with the demands of the residents. However, she believes because of the nature of the wire and the undulating nature of the schoolyard, the wooden posts that have been planted by the residents are already rocking out of their foundations and metal posts are required to do the fencing.
"In addition, the lack of the perimeter fence means there is always the danger of the children wandering off the school compound and getting hurt in traffic. Then there is also the matter of stray animals always posing a problem to staff, students and the school plant," Ms. Scott said.
Meanwhile, Brian Silvera, Superintendent of Works for Trealwny, said residents are allowing their preferences to dictate their attitude to the project, instead of sticking to the work agreed on and budgeted for under the project.
"$100,000 was allocated for the project, but if the council is to follow what the people are demanding like metal fence posts, that would cost an estimated $400,000. Those demands were not budgeted for," insisted Mr. Silvera.
