STUDENTS attending three of the nation’s high schools will no longer have to contend with the shift system, as the institutions will be removed from that fixture during the new school year.
The schools are Holy Trinity High, in Kingston, Glengoffe High, St Catherine, and Anchovy High in St James.Education minister Ronald Thwaites made the disclosure during a back-to-school press conference held at the Office of the Prime Minister in St Andrew on Friday.Thwaites said that over time, more schools will be removed from the system used by institutions to accommodate the large number of students.In the meantime, the education minister said that expansion works at the Holy Trinity High School will be completed during the first term of the school year.For Glengoffe High School, Thwaites said that a new classroom block has been added, which will facilitate its removal from the shift system. He thanked the Government of Japan for funding the project.The minister also said that the Montpelier Complex in St James will be renovated to facilitate the expansion of Anchovy High School in January 2014.Turning to other school plants which are being upgraded, Thwaites said that the Cedar Grove High School in St Catherine will open in September, starting with 100 grade seven students.“A portion of the building has been finished for us to start. When the plant is completed in November, it will have a capacity of 1,200 students and will include a sixth form, which is very much needed in the Portmore vicinity,” he said.Thwaites said that the Belair High School in Manchester is now a grant-aided school and will, in September, accommodate an additional 105 students at grade six, and an expanded sixth form.The minister also noted that repairs and expansion at the Garvey Maceo High School in Clarendon was completed and will be ready for occupancy at the start of the new school year.In the meantime, he said that 63 basic schools will be absorbed into 50 infant departments in primary schools, with others to follow later during the school year.Thwaites also noted that the ministry is on track to convert 66 pit latrines to water closets by December 2013.The 2013/14 academic school year is slated to begin on September 2.THWAITES… more schools to be removed from shift systemView the original article here
Three high schools to end shift system
