Citing the high cost of technical and vocational (tech-voc) textbooks for the secondary level, the Ministry of Education and Youth says it will only be providing 25 per cent of these books for the 2006/2007 academic year.
"Because of financial constraints, some of the tech-voc offerings, as well as other texts for religious education and drama, have been trimmed," said Adelle Brown, chief education officer in the Education Ministry.
She added: "And it is not because we do not think that these subjects are important but the fact is that the texts for tech-voc subjects are the most expensive, so we will only be able to supply 25 per cent of some of these books."
The technical and vocational subjects for which books will be provided are agricultural science, religious education, drama, home economics, visual arts, plumbing, carpentry, building technology, welding, motor mechanics, clothing and textiles and metal works.
Grade seven exception
An exception will be made for students in grade seven who will be provided with 100 per cent of the books in the subject areas of agricultural science, home economics, visual arts and religious education.
The ministry will continue providing 100 per cent of the books for traditional subjects.
The Ministry of Education and Youth has allotted more than $890 million for the purchase of textbooks to be used in the upcoming academic year.
Mrs. Brown said $576 million is to be used to purchase books for secondary schools, while $315.7 million would be spent on books for primary schools. As such, she noted that parents would have no need to purchase those books which the ministry will be providing free of cost, such as mathematics and reading books.
Addressing concerns by parents that some teachers primarily used books other than those provided by the ministry, Mrs. Brown said teachers should refrain from this practice as it placed students who could not afford to purchase those books at a disadvantage.
