Summer school shelved

COVID-19 has stuck a pin in Government’s Bounce Back Summer Programme.

The educational summer camp that garnered interest from over 2000 students was set to commence on Monday but has now been delayed until the green light is given by the Ministry of Health and Wellness.

Last weekend, following a significant rise in COVID-19 cases on the island, Health Minister Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Bostic announced several new restrictions for the next two weeks.

Among them was that summer camps would be prohibited during that period.

In a press conference this morning at the Ministry of Education’s Constitution Road headquarters, Acting Chief Education Officer Joy Adamson revealed that the Bounce Back Summer Programme had been put on hold indefinitely.

The three-week programme is targeted at primary school students from Infants A up to Class 3, and was intended to assist those who fell behind in their studies as a result of the switch to online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

She revealed that to date, 2400 students, had expressed interest in taking part in the summer programme.

Additionally, she said 354 volunteers comprising 168 teachers and 186 non-teachers, had signed up for the summer session. The latter was made up of retired educators, students from Erdiston Teachers Training College, university graduates, social workers and psychologists.

The ministry had identified 13 centres and schools which would be used and placed them into five zones; North, South, East, West and Central. Students would have been assigned to the nearest centre based on their school’s location.

“Based on the recent directives from the Ministry of Health and Wellness there are to be no summer camps for the next two weeks. This means that the identified start day of July 19 for Infants A and Infants B will now have to be adjusted, but the new date will be influenced by the future directive from the Ministry of Health and Wellness. The ministry cannot state a date now until we get further direction,” Adamson said.

However, she maintained that even if the camp was cancelled, authorities would still do everything in their power to assist students who had fallen behind.

“If the restriction for summer camps is extended then the Ministry of Education will still put measures in place for these students who we know would have lost a lot to ensure that when they return to school there is time allocated for some form of remediation,” Adamson explained.

She said the results of the recently completed national assessment would be used by principals with assistance from the ministry in planning a course of action for students in the new school year.

Teachers and unions had strongly objected to participating in the Bounce Back Summer Programme.

President of the Barbados Union of Teachers (BUT) Pedro Shepherd argued that the proposal would stretch the school year way past the customary 38 weeks.

He also contended that to hold the programme would further burden both students and teachers who endured a strenuous school year and were in dire need of relaxation and rest.
(randybennett@barbadostoday.bb)