On the first day of the new school term, five of 12 teachers at Belmont Government Primary School walked out of classes over concerns about a possible health hazard from a pigeon infestation.
In addition, repairs to several schools which were earmarked for work during the Christmas vacation were not completed.
That was the situation on Monday when thousands of students turned out for classes, although Education Minister Anthony Garcia had given an assurance during an interview on CNC3’s The Morning Brew that all schools were in a state of readiness.
President of the T&T Unified Teachers’ Association (TTUTA) Lynsley Doodhai said while all schools opened, the union had received reports of teachers walking out at Belmont Government Primary due to a pigeon infestation—a problem that existed last term.
He said although the five teachers withheld their services, the school remained operational. He promised to raise this issue with the ministry.
On the issue of school repairs, Doodhai said TTUTA was told that work was not done on more than 100 schools, including Cipero RC Primary, Point Cumana Government Primary and Bamboo Government Primary.
“Information reaching us is that these schools will be fixed after school hours and during the Easter vacation,” he said.
He said another sore point is that several assistant teachers at primary schools were not paid their December salaries.
Doodhai said the union was taking legal action to seek the interest of secondary school teachers marking School-Based Assessments.
Last year, the Chief Personnel Officer (CPO), in a report to the ministry, recommended disciplinary action against teachers who refuse to mark SBAs. The union maintains that teachers should be paid for such tasks.
“I am hopeful that our lawyers can complete the work they are doing right now with respect to a claim to be filed in the High Court on Friday on the SBA issue,” Doodhai said.
Garcia said he expects teachers to mark the SBAs.
“I don’t foresee any hiccups with the marking of SBAs. If SBAs are not corrected then those children will have a failing mark. It will be done to the detriment of those students and all of us. We need to hold hands and not to find ourselves in this situation,” he said.
The minister promised to work with TTUTA and the National Parents Teachers’ Association to increase attendance of students before and after Carnival. He appealed to parents to send their children to school to prevent disruptions in their studies.