What is the JTA really doing?

By Jaevion Nelson

Every so often we talk about the problems in the education system. We lament about how it is littered with a plethora of avoidable challenges that we have been discussing for several years with little or no action. And in some cases where there is action they bear little results. We blame parents and their children for their performance. Politicians and teachers (not as a collective) are routinely fielded with scathing remarks in this regard as well, but not the Jamaica Teachers' Association (JTA).

One wonders why the JTA seems so frighteningly unperturbed by what is happening in our schools; in our education system. They apparently are mute and/or helpless unless it affects their salary and benefits. Oh, they are suspiciously loud when the status quo is being disrupted, such as when they are to be redeployed or a new policy from the Ministry of Education is imminent.

majority not performing well

It is no secret that the vast majority of our students are not performing well academically. Nearly 40 per cent do not complete secondary school. Only one in four who complete secondary school have certification. Around 80 per cent of people in rural Jamaica do not has certification. Most of the 164 secondary schools do not offer students a 70 per cent chance of passing mathematics or English. Many schools are under-resourced - limited number of furniture for students, and ill-equipped labs, among other things. If I were to be allowed, I could almost pen an exhaustive list of issues to fill all the pages of today's paper to ventilate about the woes of the educational system which the JTA seems hardly, if ever, concerned about.

guessing game

The fact that we can almost guess the top schools and least-performing schools by exam passes at the CSEC level; that we are not surprised by a study - however poorly written and unscientific it may have been - by the police which shows that the vast majority of certain types criminals come from particular schools; and the fact that we can almost guess the headlines in August when CSEC grades are due (year after year after year) is evidence of how grave and distressing the situation is.

What really is the purpose of the JTA if not to concern itself with the challenges of the education system and the output of students as much as it is about their compensation packages? A quick glance at their website reveals an impressive list of achievements over the years. Most relate to salaries and benefits of some kind but it was established in 1964 for that purpose. The JTA is "responsible for the enhancement and protection of the economic welfare, professional development and personal well-being of its members and the promotion of the educational interests of the country of Jamaica." What then is the cause for its worrying apathy with regards to the latter?

Where is their collective voice to challenge the many teachers who are failing our children? The teachers who do not prepare lesson plans? The teachers who do not care whether your child, sister, niece or cousin does well in school? What about the teachers who do not teach but do so well in extra lessons? The teachers who are always missing from class but would never be absent from a private extra lesson? How is the JTA helping the Ministry of Education as it relates to paedophiles who are teaching our children? Does the entity even have a position on this matter? What is the JTA doing to hold the Government accountable to the educational welfare of our students? What is the strategy to moot for more equitable distribution of the scarce resources to all our schools (especially the ones that are most in need)?

The JTA should rise from its slumber. It cannot afford to be so idle where the performance of students and improvement of our education system are concerned. I humbly submit that as a collective it is as much a part of the quandary as it is a part of the solution.

The next president should ensure his/her legacy is much more than fighting for better wages, but to use its might to ensure that students receive quality education and that far more have a chance of being well-trained citizens.

Jaevion Nelson is a youth development, HIV and human rights advocate. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and jaevion@gmail.com.