Bellefield High opens new block in push to end shift system

 

As part of the drive to remove Bellefield High School in Manchester from the shift system, the school funded the construction of a grade 11 block that was officially opened on Thursday. 

 

The block consists of four classrooms and administrative offices. 

 

Speaking at the event, Principal Paul Grant said many thought the unified vision to end the shift system was nothing more than a pipe dream, but this has not proven to be the case. 

 

"We commissioned, as you heard earlier, our Building Construction Department, led by Mr. Christopher McIntosh to provide technical guidance. Then we proceeded to ask Mr. Okeen Dennis and Mr. Ian Christie, teachers of AutoCAD, who consistently achieved a 90-100 per cent pass at CSEC AutoCAD, to spearhead. 

 

"By now, you may be wondering, so where this school got all this money from to construct the block of classrooms... It's simply from parents' contribution, a strict financial management of our internal revenue services, such as our tuck shop and canteen services. We can assure you that no aspect of engineering quality and quantity of material were compromised in the construction of these classrooms," he principal stressed.

 

Mr. Grant said at least 16 additional clasrooms will be needed to accommodate the entire cohort of 1,400 students at the same time daily.

 

The Ministry of Education has committed to removing all remaining schools from the shift system by the 2028-29 academic year. 

 

In the meantime, Mr. Grant said the shift system has become burdensome as it limits contact hours with teachers to four hours per day, encourages truancy, absenteeism, academic fatigue and raises safety concerns.

 

But the Belfield High principal said despite the challenges, the school has been able to work miracles in achieving academic success at the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) level. 

 

"Of the total number of students who sat the CSEC examination, we have 36 grade ones, 177 grade ones and 259 grade threes. Clock that," he boasted, adding that this is "despite...the students that we get each year".