30,000 students to get restorative justice training, says MOE
Published:Thursday | May 18, 2023 | 1:13 AMChristopher Thomas/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
EDUCATION MINISTER Fayval Williams says her ministry will be partnering with the Ministry of Justice to train 30,000 students in restorative justice practices during the 2023-24 financial year in the hope that it will reduce violence in schools.
Williams, who was making her Sectoral Debate presentation in the House of Representatives yesterday, said that the initiative will target schools that are located in the seven areas covered by zones of special operations [ZOSO]. These include Denham Town, Greenwich Town, Parade Gardens and August Town in Kingston St Andrew; Norwood and Mount Salem in St James; and Savanna-la-Mar in Westmoreland.
“I have to acknowledge Justice Minister Delroy Chuck for the work that his ministry has been doing to provide restorative justice training to parents, educators, and students of 207 public primary and secondary schools. At the end of March 2023, over 5,000 stakeholders in the education system were trained in restorative justice,” said Williams.
“For this fiscal year, both our ministries are committed to training an additional 30,000 students from 500 public schools, and we have a memorandum of understanding between us that is guiding us. Some 25,000 students from 19 primary schools and 14 high schools are targeted to benefit from this intervention under the Government of Jamaica’s Citizens Security Programme, and these are primarily schools in our ZOSO areas,” added Williams.
The issue of violence in schools has been a perpetual headache for the Ministry of Education and other stakeholders as students have been seriously injured or killed in confrontations on school grounds. Some of the incidents have been video-recorded and shared on social media.
In January, the Ministry of Education sought to expand its preventative measures to tackle the issue of violence in schools, following an incident in which a student of the St Catherine-based Cedar Grove Academy stabbed another during a fight on the compound. The injured student was later released from the hospital.
Following that incident, six male students of Port Antonio High School in Portland were taken into police custody in February after six fights reportedly broke out at the school in what is believed to be a series of related incidents. Those confrontations were said to be between rival gangs within the institution.
During her presentation, Williams also noted that 58 persons had received leadership training under the European Union’s Spotlight Initiative, which is aimed at helping school leaders to reduce school-related and gender-based violence.
“This course was designed on the premise that interventions to reduce gender-based violence must be grounded in behavioural change brought about by the development of non-threatening school environments, where the rights of children are respected and promoted. Some 58 school leaders have been trained thus far, and the work continues,” said Williams.