Bermuda Public Education

 Let me preface this by saying that I currently have two children in the Public School System and two more that will be enrolled in the next few years so I have a vested interest in seeing it succeed. It is my belief that major restructuring is needed and not just the window dressing that we have seen previously or what has been recently proposed. From my own personal experiences I can point out numerous flaws that need to be addressed.

 Teachers are being admitted into the system with dubious credentials. Just because you have a degree in a field from a learning institution that nobody has heard of does not make you qualified to teach my or anyone else's children. Backgrounds and qualifications must be vetted more thoroughly.

  I have found that there are many wonderful teachers but their creativity is stifled by an overly rigid and controlling structure. If they are truly qualified instructors then please remove the bureaucratic obstacles and let them teach. They enter the system fresh and full of ideas with a sparkle in their eye and a fire in their heart, but within a few years this is extinguished and replaced by the "it's just a job" attitude. I fear that this is causing the exceptional teachers to leave the system and persue more fulfilling roles in the private sector.

 When broken down per child the amount of money spent is outrageous for the sub par level of service provided. $150 million dollars divided by 5,900 students equals $25,423 per year. Student enrollment is dropping as more people lose faith in the system and place their children in private education and home schools yet the Ministries budget does not reflect this.

 The children are being made to adjust to the learning environment instead of the environment and curriculum being tailored and tweaked to fit them.  Outside the box thinking and innovation is discouraged as is anything that is not considered the "norm". It can be seen throughout history that outside the box thinkers that didn't conform are the ones that have led the way. Is the goal to produce strictly average students? If the current regime continues this will undoubtedly be the end result.

 I have had experiences with reading recovery and learning support in Primary School. One would think the extra help for the students is a good idea but the problem is this. If a student is having problems with reading and you pull said student out of his mathematics class on a continual basis would you be at all surprised if the students falls behind in math as well? Seems like a simple problem but it occurs more often than you would think.

The Hopkins Report laid out exactly what was wrong and needed improvement. It also clearly explained ways for them to be fixed. We owe it to our children to act on these recommendations as soon as possible, it has already been four years since the report was presented. How many more years must we wait?

Having said all this please realize that I am not making a blanket statement about all teachers or all schools. Also let me say that a teachers job today is more difficult than ever with all the social ills that are so pervasive in our community. We also must not forget that parents have a huge roll to play and I am by no means absolving them of any responsibility in the problems with education today. At the end of the day my ultimate goal is the same as yours, to insure that our children receive the world class education that our tax dollars have paid for.