Teachers abandon classrooms

TEACHERS at the Siparia Senior Comprehensive school remained in the staff-room and did not teach classes yesterday, following several incidents of violence and indiscipline at the school. President of the school’s PTA Hayden Bennett said teachers have been tolerating this type of violent behaviour from the students for far too long and there is an urgent need for security measures. “The teachers have since come up with a slogan that says, ‘We want back our school,’” Bennet added. “The teachers are totally fed up.” Bennett is now pleading to parents of students who attend the school to keep the pupils away from classes because of the situation. He also urged parents to attend an emergency meeting at the school on Wednesday, starting at 1 pm. Bennett said if no solution comes out of that meeting then the teachers would have no choice but to resort to a complete closure in the operations of the school.

He said they have since made an attempt to contact Education Minister Hazel Manning via phone but were told that the Minister does not see or converse with anyone. They were told they would have to write an official letter to the Minister informing her of the situation and then the necessary actions would be taken. Meanwhile, protests by parents of students attending the Bien Venue Presbyterian school continued yesterday, over a lack of security at that school. Newsday was told that a building supervisor and a project manager, both of the Education Ministry, visited the school yesterday and met with vice-principal Mrs Adimoolah. They assured Mrs Adimoolah that enhanced security measures would be implemented at the school at the end of November. Contacted for comment yesterday, head of  the Southern Police Division Snr Supt Desmond Lambert, said he had instituted a mobile police patrol at the school, both night and day, until the Education Ministry’s security measures were implemented.