The population of Barbados has doubled if not tripled since the 1960s yet the same legislations are in place in 2018 but we somehow wonder why we're facing this crisis. Pride can be a two edged sword cause all the boasting government does about having free education and healthcare has resulted in this country having one of the highest public debts in the world. We all understand the importance of education and healthcare in any country however taxes alone cannot maintain the high quality of these areas. There needs to be tuition fees for secondary and tertiary education because at this stage it is being abused and there is no real appreciation for it by many today.
We all know that when we have to invest not just our time but more importantly our hard earned money in anything we want there is more of a need for it to be cherished.
I'm not saying that secondary schools should charge thousands of dollars a semester for children to get an education. Tuition fees can start as low as $300-400 per semester with a cut off around $800-$1000 per semester for the more established and recognized schools on the island. Why are people having 5-6 children and expecting the government to take care of them? This practice needs to stop because people need to understand what real responsibility is and they can't if they are being thought that government will pick up their slack.
Submitted by J. Layne
I am happy that the students have the opportunity to return to UWI and supported by government.
I would like to suggest that students who desire to read for more than one Bachelor's degree be required to pay for the second one unless it is work related.
To me this would serve to assist students in proper planning, study in areas that would benefit the country in the shortest possible time and reduce expenditure.
In order to assist the student in making a strong long term educational decision, a guidance sesson can be offered prior to acceptance to UWI.
Yvette
Cost Reduction: Education
It is currently the practice of Government to partially pay for bursaries for students who did not gain a place in one of the public schools on the island. However, there are some parents who want their child (children) to attend a private school and to this end, in filling out the form that relates to choice of schools, they only select bursary. Some of these pupils gain enough marks in the 11-plus exam to attend one of the government run schools. I believe this should be reserved for those pupils who genuinely need the assistance due to the fact that they did not gain enough marks for entry into one of the public secondary schools rather than fulfilling the desires of parents who do not want their children to attend a "public school."
With regards to The UWI Cave Hill Campus - I believe that Government should honour its' pledge of free tertiary education. However, I think that there should be some additional conditions in place so as to minimise or eliminate wastage (whether of time or valuable resources) on the part of the students.
For example:
Full time students - government pays for three (3) years only. The onus is then placed on the student to finish their program in the time stipulated or pay for the additional time needed to finish the program.
Part time students - government pays for four (4) years with the same conditions as for full time students.
Also, as it relates to part time students, for those gainfully employed, an assessment of their financial standing should be made to ascertain whether or not they are in a position to contribute to the cost of their chosen program.
In addition, government pays once per subject. Therefore, if a student fails, the financial burden to retake that subject is on the student.
There should also be a pledge by the first graduate in a family who has benefited from the assistance of government, to not only give back to the country in terms of time, but also to assist the next person in the household who has the same aspiration to become a university graduate.
by V Holland
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