ONE has to be at a Suva Bus Terminal to see that every morning students in school uniforms loiter around the area way past 8am.
Even worse is when we drive past some of the major schools around 10am, these students are seen making their way to school without an urgency or seen to be in a hurry knowing that they’re about two hours late, and may have missed two subject classes at least.
These students don’t seem to have a care in the world of the repercussions of absenteeism.
I wonder if the school teachers or the parents do even care.
My friend thinks that the parents don’t care enough because they don’t pay school fees.
So, their sending their students to school is just an obligation to satisfy the statutory requirements of compulsory education.
The students don’t care, neither the parents.
Why should the taxpayers bear the burden of such ignorance?
We think that the Government needs to stop the free education scheme, and let the parents pay so that they become more responsible.
If the parents complain of the high costs, then I must remind them of what someone said, “if you think education is expensive try ignorance”.
I think that the slide in morality, and mentality of the current product of our school system can be partly attributed to the slack attitude brought by too much pampering by Government.
We need to have the parents responsible, and teachers accountable for the education of our children.
Otherwise all the efforts to school our children will be in vain.
Utiko Nabunobuno
Lautoka
