The Belize National Teachers Union called a press conference today to share its position on the Ministry of Education’s finalized list which was released at the start of the new school year in September. It involves the re-categorizations of schools for hardship and rural allowances as well as time off to collect salary. Today, the […]
On Thursday, the Ministry of Education made a number of claims against the B.N.T.U., including that the union didn’t respond to information made available to them nor did they raise concerns. Today, the B.N.T.U. hit back at the ministry for calling them liars. They produced emails to support their account of what did and did […]
And so the B.N.T.U. says that it will be participating in the meetings scheduled for the categorization list. But in the mean time, they want to make their point loud and clear that they will stand up for what they believe. Nadia Caliz hit back at the Minister of Education’s comments about Stann Creek teachers. […]
The Belize National Teachers Union and the Ministry of Education are at odds again. The B.N.T.U. says a number of its members will be disenfranchised by the “finalized” listing of re-categorised hardship schools. The list was introduced by the Ministry of Education at the start of the school year, but the B.N.T.U. says the exercise […]
The Council also looked at the issue of day offs, half day or a full day, granted to teachers only at the end of the month to collect salaries at the banks. Back in November 2010, it was agreed that eligible schools with proper justification would be allowed to take the last Friday off in […]
The Minister of Education Patrick Faber, however, came down hard on the B.N.T.U. saying that they had been part of the process to finalise the list of hardship posts. Faber says that the B.N.T.U. has it wrong and it is the Ministry of Education that makes the final determination on policy matters. Patrick Faber, […]
Nine of eleven teachers at the Claver College Extension on Punta Gorda were fired earlier this week on Tuesday. The teachers were let go when they could not agree on the terms of a contract on their salaries to be paid every two months. Board Chair Lisel Alamilla sent them home and is looking for […]
There has been a mass firing of teachers at the Saint Peter Claver College Extension in Punta Gorda. As many as nine teachers, who represent ninety percent of the teaching staff, were first asked to pick up their cheques and then handed their termination letters on Tuesday. The firings have sent the adult education centre […]
The decision was unilaterally taken by the Board of Saint Peter Claver College Extension. But that board consists of only the Chair, Lisel Alamilla and the treasurer, Mark Miller. The teachers are questioning if the decision is valid since the board is operating without representatives from the teacher, the student body, the Ministry of Education […]
Alamilla became chairperson of the institution back in November of 2017 and since then, the student population has doubled. There have also been various improvements at the facility. She contends that there was a lack of proper accounting and the proposed payment plan was designed to put in place proper controls. Alamilla acknowledges that applications […]
The Belize National Teachers Union issued a strong release today saying it is disgusted at the way the Ministry of Education shared a “finalized” listing of re-categorised schools to managements, principals and teachers. The B.N.T.U. says that over the summer its President Elena Smith was a part of a sub-committee that reviewed and revised the […]
The next time you hear the word ‘Bembe gial,’ it would not mean that a woman is abrasive or aggressive. In fact, clarity was provided to the meaning of the word today during a book launch at the Image Factory. The eBook features fourteen ‘Bembe’ women who have made their mark in Belize. We found […]
How did Belize fair off in the 2018 Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate, better known as CXC? As we reported a few weeks ago, several schools were not in receipt of their grades, despite the official results having been landed in the country. Some schools are still without their results. But what is causing the delay? […]
The annual children’s rally returned to the Civic Centre this morning. Primary school children from schools in the Belize District converged there to show their love and respect for the country. With national celebrations underway, the event was a fitting occasion to encourage patriotism and nationalism at a young age. The day started with a […]
Belize joined the rest of the world today in celebrating International Literacy Day. The event was marked with a fair at the ITVET Compound in Belize City. The Ministry of Education, which organized the event, says it wants to ensure that young people become literate in all its forms. News Five’s Isani Cayetano reports. […]
Police officers were called on a group of Nazarene High School students this morning after they refused to leave from in front of the school’s compound in Belize City. The students were prevented from entering the compound and attending classes after it was deemed that their hairstyles were inappropriate. Tensions quickly rose and the school […]
In the remote village of Mabilha in the Toledo District, parents decided to keep their children at home for a second day in protest. They were up in arms that a request to have a teacher transferred from the school had gone unanswered for over a year. The allegations made against the teacher is that […]
Late this evening, the principal of Mabilha Government School confirmed that the management had identified a replacement for Angel Cal and has agreed to resolve the issue. Chairman Mateo Salam read an excerpt from a follow-up letter sent to management earlier this year. On the Phone: Mateo Salam, Chairman, Mabilha Village “This letter serves […]
Machakil Ha is one of the most southernmost villages in the Toledo district and has a small population. The children from the village have to attend school at Corazon Creek Village which is about fifteen miles away. It might not seem difficult if they commute by public transportation, but for the students of Machakil Ha, […]
The University of the West Indies, Open Campus signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Belize Telemedia Limited today. The M.O.U. establishes the terms of a joint initiative between the two parties and committing B.T.L. to provide data services at special rates to UWI students. As part of this collaboration, B.T.L. will also give consideration to […]
Gwen Lizarraga High School formally reopened its classrooms to approximately three hundred and thirty-five students across all forms on Monday morning, officially kicking off the academic calendar for 2018. The start of a new school year, however, is not without the requisite housekeeping. News Five understands that a meeting was held on the same day […]
Aside from a reduction of teachers, resources allocated for the development of students will also be reduced considerably, since funding is set aside based on the size of its enrollment. Smith tells News Five that the method used to identify which teachers will not be returning also includes lecturers who are aptly qualified. On […]
Nine Belizeans have been awarded scholarship to pursue a one-year post-graduate study in the U.K. The Chevening Scholarship awarded by the British government offers outstanding emerging leaders and influencers to pursue studies in their field of expertise at any U.K. university. This year’s recipients are: Hero Balani, Ashley Jones, Kendra Butler, Robin Quilter, Yusleidy Chan, […]
The results for the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate, better known as CXC, have not been officially released to the media and the public as yet. But some schools in southern Belize and elsewhere have received their grades in the exams taken earlier this year. So how did Belize fair off in the exams, given a […]
The Regional Anti-Doping Organization has suspended Belize’s National Anti-Doping Organization. This happened on August fourteenth, following another absence by Belize’s rep Doctor Michael Pitts at a meeting of the Advisory Board in Cuba. According to the official letter that was copied to Minister of Sports Patrick Faber, this is the third consecutive time that Doctor […]
