Risk ranking used to determine face-to-face scale back, says Williams

 

Education Minister Fayval Williams says the risk ranking approach to the re-opening of schools was used to guide the decision announced Wednesday that only students preparing for exit exams should attend school physically.

 

The ministry has been criticised by the presidents of the Jamaica Teachers' Association and the Jamaica Association of Principals of Secondary Schools about the basis on which decisions are being made in relation to schools.

 

Jasford Gabriel and Linvern Wright say they have been left confused as the standards for the opening and closing of schools are not clear.

 

Speaking Thursday on the Morning Agenda on Power 106, the Education Minister gave details on the decision which came more than two weeks after the surge in COVID-19 cases began.

 

Mrs Williams said it included analysis of data on schools.

 

"We had been keeping a list of schools and at the point where we noticed that a number of schools had made it unto our caution list, and when we looked at the spread of the schools across Jamaica, other than two parishes, there were schools in every other parish (with cases). Plus, on a weekly basis...we required our schools to report to us in terms of suspected cases or actual cases, so that's information that we'd been watching," she explained. 

 

Mrs Williams also defended the decision not to end face-to-face classes, arguing that "Jamaica itself continues to operate" with businesses, supermarkets and churches still open, therefore if that approach were to be taken, the country itself should be shut down.  

 

Mrs Williams added that random testing of students, as proposed by the JTA, is not being considered at this time.