And while the final date of the CXCs is still undetermined, another tough pill to swallow in the education system is that because of the COVID-19 threat, formal graduation ceremonies cannot happen.
It's a highlight of all scholars to be celebrated and honored for their hard work in their education. But, because gatherings of more than 10 people are currently illegal, graduates will simply have to settle for receiving their diplomas.
Today, the Education Minister told us that his ministry is still planning some kind of virtual event to pay respects to those hard-working students:
Hon. Patrick Faber - Minister of Education
"I am pretty sure that some people saw the tribute that CNN did, and we're thinking about doing something like that for the entire nation of Belize. Questions have come up of course, about graduation fees, and fees in general. Let me place on record the Ministry's as it relates to these pending fees for the current school year. You must pay your fees where you can. I understand that there is a serious economic crunch right now, but most of our schools don't charge a monthly fee, you know. They have an annual fee, and in order to accommodate the students and their parents, the schools break it up. Some of them break it up into monthly installments so that you can afford it. When your child does not go to school or has not gone to school over the period of the break for COVID-19, in some cases, the teachers still have to be paid. If you are working in a grand-aided school, you know that he formula allows for about 70% or so of the grant monies to be used for paying the teachers? Where is the other 30% to come from if people don't pay their fees? So, I know that this question was posed to the Prime Minister, and the Prime Minister said that he would defer to the Ministry of Education for a response. And that's our position. Where you can, not because your child did not go to school for a month or 2 months means that you should not pay the fees, or that the school does not have expenses that it needs to cover in order to continue. Education is a very expensive thing. So, we must insist on that. What we will not condone are those schools that are saying $300 for graduation. No graduation ceremony is happening, clearly. No cap and no gown are going to be rented. No place is going to be rented to hold a big shindig for graduation."
"I understand there might be a minimal cost, the cost of printing the diploma, the cost of putting it in a nice jacket. That is, to me, a worthy cost still, but don't fleece the students and their parents, especially not at this time where finances are an issue for all our Belizean families."
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