MSJ: Do not reduce lunch hour

Expressing the MSJ’s opposition to the Primary Schools Principals’ Association’s proposal to reduce the lunch break for primary school children, Abdulah said, it is a “a knee jerk reaction” that some schools may have with the supervision of children during the lunch break.

Incidents of bullying and other activities that have resulted in children being physically hurt may have occurred during the lunch break, he said.

Noting that many problems require fixing, he said, it seems as if those in authority are intent on looking at either taking short cuts or refusing to take responsibility for what takes place on their watch.

“Shortening the lunch hour is just another way of saying, he said, “we don’t want to take responsibility for what happens in the schools.” The MSJ’s position, he said, is that children need the one hour lunch break to have their lunch and some recreation time with their friends.

The MSJ, he said, is proposing the Ministry of Education introduce the use of volunteers such as parents, former teachers or persons within the community to supervise children during the lunch break.

The party suggests that the ministry includes as part of the schools’ curriculum issues such as conflict resolution, and increases the number of social workers and guidance counselors in all schools to work with parents, students and teachers. “In this regard,” Abdulah said, “we deplore the situation where social workers attached to schools have not had their contractual arrangements met by the employer.

This is an indication that the ministry is not getting its priorities right.”