Answers being sought after students at St James school not allowed in

The Barbados National Council of Parent-Teacher Associations (BNCPTA) is investigating allegations that some Frederick Smith Secondary School students were locked out of the school on Tuesday morning.

In an interview with Barbados TODAY on Wednesday, concerned general secretary Nicole Brathwaite said she was actively seeking answers.

A video making the rounds on social media on Tuesday showed several school children standing outside the gate of the Trents, St James school.

In an accompanying voice note, an upset parent claimed the principal had locked the children out at 9:15 a.m. and had used inappropriate language in speaking to the students.

When contacted, principal Stephen Jackman declined comment and Barbados TODAY’s efforts to reach Chief Education Officer Dr Ramona Bradshaw-Archer were unsuccessful.

Brathwaite said if the security and principal conducted themselves in an inappropriate manner, they should be dealt with accordingly. However, she said, if it was a case of disciplinary action, that was a different matter.

“We don’t have all the details to say accurately that that was what unfolded yesterday, so we are investigating to get answers and clarity.

“We want to make sure that discipline is maintained and that children are held responsible for getting in place. But, at the same time as adults, security and the principal dealing with children would still have to use appropriate language. You don’t want to be taking advantage of your post or say derogatory things like what was alleged,” the BNCPTA official said.

Brathwaite said it was important to get to the bottom of the matter.

“We have not yet heard from the Parent-Teacher Association [at the school] but from speaking to parents, I was told that there are long lines outside the gate on mornings for children to get their bags checked and so on,” she said. “Sometimes the lines are so long, by the time it’s 9:15 children are still out there and the gate is supposed to close at 9:15. From what we understand, the children are to be at school for 8:35.

“I was also told that some children tend to lime down the road and wait until they think prayers are over and then come up the street,” she added.

Meanwhile, Brathwaite said the Ministry of Education needed to improve its emergency protocols at schools.

She was referring to flooding in Trents and surrounding areas last week as a result of inclement weather.

Videos circulating on social media on September 28 showed a number of Frederick Smith students wading through knee-high flood waters, some with shoes off and pants rolled up.

There was also footage of a male carrying a female on his back through the water.

“The Ministry needs to tighten up their approaches in these types of scenarios. They have the school alert application which they can use to send out messages to parents to collect their children early, or what they can do is liaise with the Ministry of Transport and agree that in such situations the children would stay at base and the buses would come onto base,” Brathwaite suggested.

She said the Ministry could work out the logistics with teachers and formulate a practical strategy since, in the event of an emergency, teachers would want to leave and see to their own children as well.

sheriabrathwaite@barbadostoday.bb