President of the Barbados Union of Teachers (BUT) Rudy Lovell is concerned about the pace of summer repairs to a number of public schools, warning that the delays are disrupting the ability of teachers to properly prepare for the academic year.
He said while the school year officially began for teachers on Monday, too many returned to find contractors still at work.
“Some schools are still being prepared for the start of the school term. Teachers went to school at some institutions and found work still being done, whether it was general cleaning or finishing tasks that were scheduled,” he said.
However, the Ministry of Educational Transformation says that all outstanding works should be completed by next Monday when the children are set to return to the classrooms.
Lovell told the MIDWEEK NATION
that the completion of repairs and maintenance work before teachers report for duty was essential, not only to ensure health and safety but also to give staff the opportunity to properly set up their classrooms.
‘Not new issue’
“We would want to have this work completed before teachers enter the classrooms or the school environment, whether it be planning week or the start of the new academic school year,” he said.
The issue of unfinished school repairs at the start of the term is not a new one. For years, the BUT and other education stakeholders have raised concerns that the summer repair programme too often runs late, leaving schools scrambling to complete essential work as students and teachers return.
Lovell admitted that the Ministry made an effort this year but said the results fell short of expectations.
“I think the Ministry may not have realised, but they took a week off the vacation period. That meant there was one week less for workmen to complete the repairs. I believe that they would have tried, but the efforts still need to be improved because we want to ensure that when teachers go into the classroom or go to the planning stage of the new school term, which is September 1, that no work is being done.”
In response to the BUT’s concerns, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Kim Belle, said they have changed the approach to school maintenance, and while the plan was for the completion of one set of work during the summer period, other issues emerged along the way.
“The Ministry has kind of shifted the mode of operations in relation to school maintenance, where everything is not just being concentrated between July and August, but we are doing a continual maintenance of our schools. In relation to the readiness of the school plants, as you would imagine, somebody’s going to do one thing, and then as you’re going, something else comes up, because it’s maintenance, it’s a building that you’re looking at,” she said.
Belle added that sometimes principals or staff request additional tasks once contractors are on site, which can extend the work schedule.
‘Principals aware’
“Taking all those things into consideration, the majority of our schools were ready for September 1, but then there were some additional things that would have taken us beyond September 1.
“We must also say, though, that the principals were aware and they had no issue with the ministry carrying out work during this week, because it is all to make sure that the schools are in better shape than they left them in July. So when the children come back for September, the schools are in a way better state, not only for the children but also for the teachers.”
The Permanent Secretary said all outstanding work should be done by September 8.
“It was not always additional work. Sometimes because of the type of work, it would have taken us beyond August 31, but we knew that it would be finished by September 8 so that we would be able to make the school plant ready for when the children returned.”
Pressed on how many schools were still awaiting final touches, Belle could not provide an exact number but insisted it was only “a handful”.
In past years, delays have ranged from incomplete roof works and electrical upgrades to painting, plumbing and basic cleaning. This year, Lovell said, painting and general tidying were still under way at some schools.
“From the point of view of teachers having to arrange their classrooms and put up their charts, that can’t be done until the work is complete. Once the work is complete, they then have to find time to do it. That may have to be either coming on to the end of this week or into next week. So it basically sets the whole planning process back at least by a week or so,” he explained.
Such delays, he added, do not necessarily threaten the reopening of school for students, but undermine the efficiency of teachers in the first days of the term. Without classrooms being properly arranged and teaching materials in place, students are not welcomed into an environment conducive to learning, he stressed.
The Ministry has in the past defended the summer repair programme, pointing to the logistical challenge of coordinating contractors across more than 70 public schools. Typically, the programme begins at the start of the summer vacation in July and runs until late August.
This year, with adjustments made to the vacation calendar, Lovell argued that the window for completion was too short.
“We know that every year there are challenges, but it cannot be the norm. Teachers should not have to step into schools where workmen are still painting or cleaning. By planning week, all ducks should be in a row,” he said. (CLM)
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