Teachers abandon Princes Town school

TEACHERS at a South primary school vowed they would no longer teach in a dilapidated building and walked out of their classrooms on Monday. They stayed away again yesterday from the St Stephens Anglican Primary School on High Street, Princes Town. As a result, the school’s student population of 250 pupils was forced to remain home. The Ministry of Education, in condemning the 49-year-old building as unfit for occupation, told Newsday yesterday the pupils would not be returning to St Stephens. The roof of the two-storey building is leaking and the ceiling is crumbling. According to the teachers, the wooden floor is rotten and there are classrooms without windows, causing students to get wet when rain falls.

Yesterday, parents decided not to send their children to school. The school’s 17 teachers reported to the Ministry of Education office nearby. Supervised by principal Bernadette Edwards, the teachers laid a complaint with Schools Supervisor Vickram Ramlal. An official from the ministry told Newsday pupils would not attend school today. Tomorrow is a public holiday for all primary schools. Two buildings in Princes Town are being earmarked by the ministry to house the pupils for the rest of this year. The school is earmarked for renovation which is expected to be completed by year’s end.