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Opposition Spokesman on Education Damion Crawford is urging the Government to take the Orlando Patterson-led Education Transformation Commission (ETOC) Report to Parliament for debate, arguing that the landmark document is too important to remain solely at the discretion of the prime minister and Cabinet. “A report so important cannot be on the whims and fancy of the prime minister and the Cabinet. It should be carried so that each individual can represent, for their own reality, what these suggestions are,” Crawford told The Gleaner in response to recent comments by ETOC Chairman Dr Adrian Stokes on the report’s progress. Crawford said a parliamentary debate would promote greater accountability and allow each member of parliament to examine the recommendations in the context of their constituencies. He pointed to the school bus system as an example of how some initiatives do not reach all communities equally. “Referencing the school bus system as an example, there are many communities that cannot get out of their spaces because that area doesn’t get a route for the school bus system. So the recommendations cannot be seen as in totality for everybody in the same way,” he said. Crawford contended that the failure to bring the report before Parliament has diminished the seriousness with which its recommendations are treated. “They should be prioritised in such a way to give each member of parliament an opportunity to debate the Patterson report,” he added. While giving the Government a pass on its declaration of a two per cent implementation rate in the last quarter – citing the recent election campaign that consumed most stakeholders’ time – Crawford lamented the overall 32 per cent implementation rate since the report’s release. “There are a lot of things they have misrepresented by saying that a review leads to a percentage of completion when it is not yet complete and ready for implementation,” he said. He also criticised Stokes’ comments at a press conference last Thursday that the recommendations remain on track with a 32 per cent progression rate, describing the statement as a misuse of statistics and “an attempt to sell a false story”. “The announced 32 per cent cited by Stokes is not a true reflection because the completion of the recommendations has not been attained,” Crawford said, asserting that the actual figure is, to his knowledge, below 10 per cent. Stokes had earlier reported that, of the 365 recommendations outlined in the Orlando Patterson Report, 189 are currently being implemented by the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, with 18 completed. He also highlighted improved Primary Exit Profile (PEP) results as evidence of progress. The Orlando Patterson Report, commissioned to address long-standing challenges within Jamaica’s education system, outlines 365 recommendations for reform over an eight-year period from 2023 to 2031. Patterson, a Jamaican-American historian and sociologist, chaired the commission, which has been described as one of the most comprehensive blueprints for transforming Jamaica’s education sector. editorial@gleanerjm.com
