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Renae DixonMonday, July 08, 2013THE Ministry of Education has made it mandatory that schools, starting at the early childhood level, teach Health and Family Life Education (HFLE) as a core subject.Principals have been reminded that all early childhood students up to grade 3 at the primary level, must, as part of the integrated curriculum be taught the equivalent of at least 30 minutes of HFLE per week; students in grades 4-6 a minimum of 40 minutes per week; and students in grades 7-9 at the secondary level for at least 30 minutes, twice per week.“I wish to stress the point that HFLE is as necessary as all the other subjects, and the time allotted should not be reallocated to other subject areas,” Education Minister Ronald Thwaites insisted in an address to the Ocho Rios Primary School leaving ceremony last week.The HFLE curriculum was withdrawn last year because some parents and teachers objected to the previous material for grades 7-9, saying it promoted the gay lifestyle. It has since been revised and all material in the curriculum now said to be age-appropriate and sensitive to the traditional beliefs and practices of the Jamaican Society. Minister Thwaites announced that the revised publication would be distributed at the start of the new school year.He advised the Ocho Rios Primary students that HFLE lessons would help them to adopt healthy lifestyles and avoid risky behaviours, such as teenage motherhood and fatherhood, which can hinder their personal development.The education minister also urged parents to start putting together their contribution to the school’s auxiliary fee, so that by September they would be in a position to pay it as responsible parents or guardians.“These fees are integral to the efficient operation of all public schools. The Government alone cannot provide financial support to educational institutions,” stated Minister Thwaites.
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Gay material now expunged from school curriculum, says Thwaites
