The views expressed herein are solely those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of One News SVG.
By Adrian S. Odle.
Every school morning in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, little children can be seen struggling under the weight of enormous schoolbags. Some of the bags are nearly as big as the children carrying them.
This cyah be right.
Education should expand children’s minds. It should not place an unnecessary burden on their developing bodies.
The American Academy of Pediatrics advises that a child’s schoolbag should generally weigh no more than 15 per cent of the child’s body weight. If a child must lean forward to support the bag, struggles to walk or develops marks on the shoulders, the bag is too heavy.
Yet many Vincentian children must carry textbooks, exercise books, folders, stationery, lunch bowls and water bottles every day. It seems like an intentional journey of struggle.
This is not an argument against books. Books remain essential to education. The problem is an outdated system that requires children to transport nearly all their books between home and school, whether those books will be used that day or not.
Parents also complain that they are instructed to purchase long lists of expensive books, only to discover that some are barely opened during the school year.
After finding money for uniforms, shoes, transportation, lunch and school supplies, parents have a right to ask, Why I had to buy all these books if the teacher hardly using them?
A long booklist is not proof of a good education. A massive schoolbag is not evidence that serious learning is taking place. Education must be measured by what children understand and can apply, not by the number of books they carry.
Every school should provide a clear weekly book schedule. If only three books will be used on a particular day, no child should be carrying eight. This should not be a guessing game of what book is going to be used.
Primary school classrooms should also have secure shelves, cupboards etc where commonly used books can remain during the week with the children’s names on them.
The Ministry of Education should consider installing simple metal lockers in schools. The lockers do not have to be fancy. They simply need to be secure enough for children to leave certain books at school.
Digital textbooks and worksheets should also be made available where possible. This must be done carefully because not every family has reliable internet service or can afford a device. Printed books must remain available, but technology can still help to reduce the physical burden.
We cannot continue talking about modern education while dem little children still bending down under bags that look heavier than them.
This problem does not require years of debate or another report to sit down gathering dust. It requires the Ministry, principals and teachers to acknowledge the burden and make sensible changes.
Our children should arrive at school ready to learn, not already exhausted from carrying half a library on their backs.
Education is supposed to lighten the burdens of a Vincentian child’s future. It should not weigh down the child’s present.
END
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