Smooth first day at schools except South

YESTERDAY’S reopening of schools after the three week Christmas vacation went smoothly with the exception of a sewer problem at the Orange Field Hindu School, which forced the school to be dismissed early. The Ministry of Education’s Communications Management Adviser, Marcia Riley, told Newsday from all reports received, there were no problems on the first day of school. However, officials of the Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers’ Association (TTUTA) told Newsday, there was a problem reported at the Orange Field Hindu School. They said the school reported a stench emanating from the sewer which forced the school’s early dismissal. Efforts to contact the school proved futile.

The ministry later said the school is expected to resume today. The Arima Boys’ RC also remained closed yesterday and will remain closed for the rest of the week, due to ongoing construction work at the school. The school will reopen on Monday of next week. Also closed was the Excel Composite in Port-of-Spain, so as to ensure a proper water supply. In South, the Princes Town Presbyterian No 2 School and the St Stephen’s Anglican School will continue to be closed today. The latter has been closed since last term, and students have been attending the Princes Town Presbyterian No 2 School.

The closure of the Princes Town Presbyterian No 2 School is to facilitate CXC examinations for private candidates. Students of both schools will resume classes tomorrow at the Princes Town Presbyterian No 2 School. In Tobago, Bishop’s High School in Tobago is the only school closed because it too is a centre for CXC examinations. As for the missing CXC English and Mathematics examination papers, Riley said the matter was in the hands of the police. She confirmed that 12 seasonal workers were dismissed, adding that their contracts were almost at an end. She said the examining body has a range of measures that they adopt in such situations and the ministry will await further directions from them.