Prime Minister of Dominica, Roosevelt Skerrit has called for a review of the education sector in the Caribbean.
Speaking on a panel of CARICOM leaders at the Regional Symposium: Violence as a Public Health Issue – The CARICOM Challenge, Prime Minister Skerrit said a review of the school system could help to address the root of crime.
He said our school systems are focused solely on passing examinations.
“There is absolutely no time in the five hours or so that the students spend in the school setting for anything to do with the well-being and welfare of the children.
We don’t take time to understand where they come from their economic circumstance and to appreciate their behaviours in the classroom,” he said.
He said there is a need for an urgent review and it would help to dry up the recruitment ground for violent behaviours.
He said anti-social behavior could lead to violent behavior and the use of guns and other weapons.
Dominica’s Prime Minister noted that sports and physical education have taken second place and extracurricular activities in the classroom no longer exist as more emphasis is placed on academic performance.
