Education Reform Consultations

The Principal of Nadarivatu High School in Tavua, Apisalome Vunisa has raised concerns about the lack of inspections at the school, which have not taken place for quite some time.

Vunisa highlighted this during the Education Act Review that took place in Tavua, where he stated that they were informed by the Ministry of Education that inspectors would be visiting the school to assess its overall performance, but the visit never occurred.

Vunisa says there is a need to reintroduce inspection visits so the ministry can monitor the quality of teaching happening in the classrooms.

The school principal also highlighted a mismatch between what is being taught in primary and secondary schools compared to what is taught at tertiary institutions.

He adds many new graduates who have come to teach at the school are very poor at school management.

A resident of Rakiraki is calling on the Education Ministry to set up an area or institution where misbehaving students can be rehabilitated rather than being sent to another school.

While speaking at the public consultation on the Review of the Education Act 1966 at the Rakiraki Town Council Market Hall, the resident said different students face different problems that influence their actions in schools.

He says transferring students from one school to another is like moving the problem from one place to another without any real solution.

The resident says this does not solve the problem.

While responding to the question, a review commission member says the Education Ministry is looking at reinstating counselling services in schools.

She says they will be able to look at the social or family issues and give advice to the student on how to deal with such problems.

The Education Ministry representative says the Ministry is also looking at training teachers in counselling services so they know how to tackle such issues, and they are also hoping to expand the number of counsellors.

The consultation on the Review of the Education Act 1966 will continue tomorrow at Nadi Civic Centre from 10am to 1pm.

Free education should be given to high-performing students and those with good attendance, not to the lazy ones.

This concern has been raised by Tavua College teacher Maryln Singh during the consultation on the Education Review Act held in Tavua, since they have observed some students take advantage of the system.

Singh says teachers often have to call parents when students do not attend school, as there is a need to encourage students to be more hardworking, especially since many parents make significant sacrifices to support their children’s education.

She also highlighted that parents heavily rely on teachers and often take them for granted, expecting them to handle responsibilities beyond the academic field, including teaching values and discipline.

Singh adds that while religious education is beneficial, parents should be the first to teach their children morals and proper behaviour.

The consultation on the Review of the Education Act 1966 will continue tomorrow at Nadi Civic Centre from 10am to 1pm.

A parent and teacher of a school in the interior of Ra has raised concerns about the safety of rural students as some of them have resorted to hanging or sitting on top of a carrier to reach school because the carrier is overcrowded.

While speaking at the public consultation on the review of the Education Act of 1966 at Rakiraki Market Hall, the concerned teacher asked members of the commission and government officials if they could stand beside the road and witness how overcrowded the vehicles are when they are coming to school or going home after school.

He says safety is a problem for those travelling in carriers as they stand most of the time.

He also says it is different for those students residing in towns and cities as they will be sitting comfortably on seats.

The concerned teacher also raised the issue of transportation because two of their students have left the school this year as they are living far.

The concerned parent also raised the issue of the unfair treatment of students with low marks being enrolled in secondary schools.

He says he believes some schools are prioritizing students with higher marks than those with low marks.

He adds they understand that there is a no-repeat policy within the Ministry and hopes the review team will look into this matter.

While responding to the concerns raised by the parent, a review commission member says they can put together a transport safety policy for students.

She acknowledged the parent for raising such issues and said this is what is really happening on the ground.

The consultation on the Review of the Education Act 1966 is underway at the Nadi Civic Centre today.

Poor English results among secondary school students are one of the major challenges teachers are facing, as majority of the students do not speak in English well, and their writing skills fall far below expectations.

This concern has been raised by Sarome Fiu, an English teacher at Tavua District Secondary School, during a consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966 held in Tavua.

Fiu says the teaching of numeracy and literacy should be made compulsory from Year 1 to Year 5.

She says they have encountered students who are non-readers, struggling readers, or those who can read but are unable to comprehend what they read.

She also questioned whether the Commission has ever considered labelling a school as a Hope School and whether they have taken into account the background of the students enrolled.

She adds a school like Tavua District is often enrolling students who have failed elsewhere or who cannot gain admission into other schools.

The consultation on the Review of the Education Act 1966 is underway at the Nadi Civic Centre today.

A concerned teacher from Rakiraki has revealed that they are now spending more time monitoring student behaviour and less time teaching the students, with student behaviour nowadays becoming worse.

While raising the issue at the public consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966 in Rakiraki, the teacher says with zero tolerance on corporal punishment being followed nowadays, more weight has been added to their work in terms of monitoring the behaviour of students.

He questioned the Ministry and the members of the review team on when the Ministry incorporated zero tolerance on corporal punishment.

He says corporal punishment was used during their school days, but they succeeded in life and got a job.

The concerned teacher also says that nowadays, when they use it on students to discipline them, the parents report the teachers.

He adds that they continue to counsel students who break the rules, but students continue to show indiscipline behaviour, and he believes counselling is not working.

He asks where a teacher stands when they try to discipline a student.

Responding to the concern raised, the Education Ministry representative says the government signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1993, and within this framework, corporal punishment was highlighted as one of the issues. He says the Ministry did not introduce the policy, but the government did.

The representative says the issue of corporal punishment will need to be re-looked at by the government.

The Principal of Natabua High School Virendra Sharma is recommending that English should not be used to determine that a student passes his or her Year 12 or 13 exams because not all students can be English-oriented

While making his submission during the public consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966 at Natabua High School Hall, Sharma says on one hand they are promoting students to showcase their talent and on the other, they are still gauging the students' pass in Year 12 and Year 13 if they pass English or not.

He asked how is this fair because some of his Year 12 and 13 students are categorised as failures for not passing English.

The Principal suggested that English should not be counted but a particular minimum mark should be put, such as 30 or 35, so that students leave Year 13 and Year 12 with a positive mindset that they have succeeded.

Sharma also suggested that schools should be mandated to have a quota for the cross-section of the community.

He says at Natabua, they cater for students from the poorest to the most disadvantaged, those who have failed, those who are sportingly talented, those who are academically talented, those who are in remote areas, those who are civil servants, and transfers.

He further says there are quite a number of schools which are doing selections in Year 9 based on academic merit only.

The Principal also revealed that meth is being sold and used in primary schools, and there is a need for teachers to be trained to counsel these students.

He says we must put more emphasis on the teacher's ability to control students' behaviour, and he thinks all teachers should be equipped with basic counselling before they graduate.

The public consultation of the review of the Education Act 1966 will continue on the 26th of this month in Sigatoka.

The team will be in Keiyasi Secondary School from 10am to 12pm, and they will move to Nahigatoka Village Hall from 2pm to 4pm.

A secondary school student has called on the Ministry for Education to train and hire more qualified teachers, keep teachers in one school for a longer period of time and give teachers the support they need after he revealed that due to the lack of support and lack of subject teachers in schools, their exam results were affected.

While contributing to the public consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966 at the Natabua High School hall, the student of Muaira Methodist College says the challenges they face are the lack of teachers and the constant changing of teachers.

He says in their class, they do not have enough subject teachers and sometimes one teacher is covering multiple subjects.

The student says they can see the tiredness in the faces of teachers when they rush for the next period they are supposed to teach.

He adds sometimes they can even wait for months or years for a new teacher.

While giving an experience the students face, he said last year, they did not have a Life Maths teacher to provide support to the students, and it resulted in a low percentage pass of 21 percent.

He says without a strong base, it feels like the students are climbing a mountain.

The student also raises the need for teachers to be well-resourced when being posted in rural schools because teachers face challenges in this area.

The headteacher of Toko Sanatan Primary School in Tavua, Gulshad Ali has highlighted the need to revise Section 31C of the Education Act 1966, which currently states that any person who inflicts abuse can be fined $200.

Ali says this is inadequate and not fully addressed in the Act.

Ali raised this concern during the education consultation in Tavua where he suggested that the clause be amended to specify that any person, including students, as there have been issues of students assaulting teachers, whether verbal or physical, should be guilty of an offence and subject to a stronger penalty.

He says a $200 fine is not enough and proposed an increased penalty of $2,000 or six months imprisonment for those who fail to pay.

Ali also emphasised that if the offender is a student, they should be expelled immediately from the school, saying such behaviour cannot be tolerated.

The public consultation of the review of the Education Act 1966 will continue on Monday in Sigatoka.

The team will be in Keyasi Secondary School from 10am to 12pm, and they will move to Nahigatoka Village Hall from 2pm to 4pm.

A mother of 4 is calling on the Ministry for Education to encourage more spiritual counselling in schools because she believes that we are not fighting a physical battle but a spiritual one in terms of the discipline of our students.

While speaking at the public consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966 at Natabua High School hall, the retired teacher said if spiritual counselling says to bring back corporal punishment, then it should be brought back.

She revealed that she uses corporal punishment to discipline her children.

She also encouraged parents to use words of love when disciplining their children.

The concerned parent also highlighted the need for a review of the education curriculum because whenever she checks her children’s workbooks, she does not understand what’s being written.

She says she complains to the teacher, but their response is that it is the standard rule.

She further says what is being taught now in kindergarten classes is what she learnt in class 6, and she hopes this is not being used to fast-track learning.

While responding to the issues raised, a member of the review team says they have been hearing issues on corporal punishment and bringing it back during their consultations.

He says spiritual counselling is also an interesting point, and they have been hearing about counselling becoming mandatory in schools.

He also says since the spiritual aspect is very tied into the fabric of our nation, and if people are suggesting this to be mandatory in all schools, then the question remains what spiritual aspect people are referring to.

The member adds this is because different schools have different religions and faiths, which can result in the separation of faith-based institutions.

He says corporal punishment will be a tricky one as this law is embedded in our constitution, and we will be breaching our international obligations.

The public consultation of the review of the Education Act 1966 will continue on Monday in Sigatoka.

The team will be in Keiyasi Secondary School from 10am to 12pm, and they will move to Nahigatoka Village Hall from 2pm to 4pm.

The renewal of land leases remains a major challenge for many schools in Fiji, particularly for iTaukei schools.

Headteacher of Toko Sanatan Primary School in Tavua, Gulshad Ali has highlighted this issue during the consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966, where he said that in recent years many schools have been taken over by the land-owning authorities, forcing the schools to relocate.

Ali suggested that the government should take over the payment of land leases, so that schools are not burdened with this responsibility.

He also highlighted that no school should be closed due to mataqali disputes or relocation issues, stating that it takes ages to make and ages to build a school.

The public consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966 will continue on Monday in Sigatoka.

The team will be at Keyasi Secondary School from 10am to 12pm, and will move to Nahigatoka Village Hall from 2pm to 4pm.

Natabua High School student Ariff Ali says the Ministry of Education should integrate Artificial Intelligence or AI into their curriculum.

Ali highlighted this at the Education Act consultation in Lautoka saying AI needs to be integrated, so they can use it responsibly.

The Year 12 student says if the Ministry of Education integrates AI into their curriculum, there is also a potential risk that teachers might lose their jobs which he does not want, because AI cannot replace teachers.

He says it is simple, but AI assistance incorporated with teachers would be such a powerful way to teach students because not every student is the same, and even if AI is not integrated, students are going to eventually somehow find out about AI because it's so easy to access such as ChatGPT or Deepseek.

Ali says students are going to access it but they are at the risk of being exploited by these organizations because their data is at risk but the Ministry of Education can incorporate this by having a legal one that is created by the Ministry.

He says this is so they can safeguard their data, and can have an ethical guideline for students to use this AI when learning difficult concepts such as mathematics or computer studies or even economics.

A concerned school teacher from the Western Division has raised alarm over the growing issue of teacher burnout, citing overwhelming workloads and pressure from parents and guardians regarding students' academic and personal development.

Speaking during a school consultation held in Ba, the teacher emphasized the urgent need for a Teacher Protection Policy to safeguard educators from emotional and verbal abuse.

The teacher, from Tavua Primary School, stated that many teachers are silently suffering from emotional strain and are at risk of mental and emotional breakdowns.

In response, a representative from the Ministry of Education acknowledged that teacher protection had been suggested during one of their consultations and confirmed that the Ministry is considering these recommendations seriously.

The representative also referred to Section 31C of the 1966 Act, which allows for a $200 fine to be imposed on any individual found guilty of inflicting abuse on teachers.

School Head Teacher for Toko Sanatan Primary School Gulshad Ali says that under the current law they should include students explicitly in the clause alongside any person, as potential offenders.

Ali says there is a need to define abuse more clearly and broadly to cover both verbal and physical forms and if a student or any person abuses a teacher verbally or physically, they should be guilty of a criminal offence and fined $2,000, or face six months imprisonment if the fine is not paid.

He says if the offender is a student, they should be expelled.

Ali stresses that the protection of teachers is essential as abuse of teachers creates a hostile educational environment.

The consultation will resume in Sigatoka on Monday.

The Education Act consultation will then be held from 10am to 1pm and then from 3pm to 6pm next Tuesday at Albert Park Lower Hall in Suva.

It will then move to FNU Nasinu Campus from 10am to 1pm and then from 3pm to 6pm at Nausori Parish Hall next Wednesday.

The Fiji Junior Certificate examination needs to be reinstated to better prepare students for the major external examinations in Years 12 and 13.

This has been highlighted by a high school teacher from Tavua during the review of the Education Act 1966.

She says from Year 12 onwards, students can begin diploma programs and progress to university.

The teacher also suggested to the commission that the salary should be used as an incentive particularly for new graduates, emphasizing that it is not fair to compare new graduates with experienced teachers.

She adds many parents have recommended that experienced teachers be assigned to teach the higher-level classes.

The consultation will resume in Sigatoka on Monday.

The Education Act consultation will then be held from 10am to 1pm and then from 3pm to 6pm next Tuesday at Albert Park Lower Hall in Suva.

It will then move to FNU Nasinu Campus from 10am to 1pm and then from 3pm to 6pm at Nausori Parish Hall next Wednesday.

A concerned teacher from Rakiraki has revealed that they are now spending more time monitoring student behaviour and less time teaching the students, with student behaviour nowadays becoming worse.

While raising the issue at the public consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966 in Rakiraki, the teacher says with zero tolerance on corporal punishment being followed nowadays, more weight has been added to their work in terms of monitoring the behaviour of students.

He questioned the Ministry and the members of the review team on when the Ministry incorporated zero tolerance on corporal punishment.

He says corporal punishment was used during their school days, but they succeeded in life and got a job.

The concerned teacher also says that nowadays, when they use it on students to discipline them, the parents report the teachers.

He adds that they continue to counsel students who break the rules, but students continue to show indiscipline behaviour, and he believes counselling is not working.

He asks where a teacher stands when they try to discipline a student.

Responding to the concern raised, the Education Ministry representative says the government signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1993, and within this framework, corporal punishment was highlighted as one of the issues. He says the Ministry did not introduce the policy, but the government did.

The representative says the issue of corporal punishment will need to be re-looked at by the government.

Sereima Dokanivalu of Saint Joseph's Secondary School says the 1966 Education Act has restricted or limited opportunities for students to express their opinions and views.

While speaking during the consultation at Albert Park, Dokanivalu says the Act focuses on teachers and authorities, however, it disregards the opinions of the students.

She is suggesting that the Ministry of Education should have a similar structure on how they have it in the schools where they discuss issues with their form captains and teachers.



The student also says there should be inclusion of AI and courses or subjects that teach students to use AI ethically, so that students don’t plagiarize essays and cheat.

While responding to her, a Legal Drafter says he is glad that great suggestions are coming from the students as they are able to express themselves.

He agrees that we need to incorporate things such as AI into our curriculum so that we don't get left behind.

Meanwhile, a student from DAV College, Waisake Koroi says there is a need to focus on mental health as many of the students feel stressed, overwhelmed and tired all the time.

He says it's not just about exams, it's also about the pressure to keep up with the performance where sometimes students hide how they actually feel.

A call is being made for further training and refreshers for teachers as they need help, especially in communication skills, and there is also a need to look at how teachers are trained in universities.

This call comes from Fiji Psychology Society President Ofakilomaloma Swann while speaking during the consultation regarding the review of the Education Act 1966 at Albert Park.

Swann also says there is a need for a psychologist in every school and parents also need some training from a psychological perspective because no child should be left behind.

Swann also highlighted the need for information literacy skills for students in secondary school. The Psychology Society President also says Early Childhood Education teachers should also be paid more and suggested this should be more than the professors up in the universities as early childhood education is a very important part of our society and must be accorded the same respect.

Consultation on the Education Act continues at FNU Nasinu Campus tomorrow morning, Nausori Parish Hall in the afternoon and Levuka Town Hall on Thursday.

Students are raising concerns about the no repeat policy in schools where they have highlighted that this policy is becoming a major concern and challenge for them.

While speaking at the public consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966 at Albert Park, a Year 13 student from Dudley High School says the Ministry of Education should discontinue the no repeat policy.

Another student from Yat Sen Secondary School also highlighted the negative impact of the no repeat policy on students’ academic performance.

She explains that while the policy was intended to promote inclusivity, it has contributed to a declining national pass rate over the years.

The Year 13 student suggests that a new policy should be introduced allowing students to repeat classes if they fail.

She is also proposing that teachers should be interviewed before being posted to schools to ensure they have the necessary teaching skills and the right conduct to effectively educate and support students.

She says some of the new teachers coming to schools nowadays have poor classroom control, and students struggle to understand their teaching.

Furthermore, students are also calling for a reduction in class sizes.

A Year 13 student from Dudley High School says there are about 50 students in a class, which is too many for a teacher to handle.

She suggests that reducing class sizes, or appointing assistant teachers, could help improve the learning environment for both students and teachers.

The public consultation for the review of the Education Act 1966 is underway at the Fiji National University Nasinu Campus and then it will be held at the Nausori Parish Hall from 3pm to 6pm today.

@fijivillage.com Students call to end no repeat policy #fiji #fyp ♬ original sound - fijivillage

An Early Childhood Education teacher is pleading to the Ministry of Education to think of them and provide them with staff quarters where they are being posted because it affects the quality of education they provide for children.

While pleading to the Ministry during the consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966 in Lautoka, the teacher says in her experience with all the schools that she has been to, no quarters were provided for them, even though the Education Ministry chose them to go to certain schools.

She says even when they stay there for long periods, such as more than 5 years, still no quarters are provided to them.

She is calling on the government to assist them.

The teacher, who has been an ECE teacher for 19 years, also raised the need to review the ECE curriculum because jolly phonics is very hard for the students to understand.

She says the only curriculum that the teachers know is the Mataniciva, but it's sad to know, too, that they are told to use jolly phonics.

She also responded to a parent who had earlier said during the consultation that there is no love from teachers, saying that sometimes even her children complain that she spends more time with her students than them.

She says she is almost getting sick every now and then because she is giving extra time to her students.

She adds some of their students are not even potty trained, and they as teachers have to humble themselves.

Another call is being made to include mandatory comprehensive sexuality education in schools as it is essential for equipping young people with factual, age-appropriate information about their bodies, relationships, and sexual and reproductive health and rights.

While speaking during consultation on Education Act 1966, Fiji Women's Rights Movement Human Rights Training Officer Ala-Cassandra Singh says comprehensive sexuality education covers critical topics such as consent, contraception, puberty and the prevention of sexually transmitted infections, and has been proven to reduce the risks of unintended teenage pregnancies and STIs.

She says it enhances young people's knowledge and supports them in making responsible and informed choices about their health and well-being.

Singh says in Fiji, the need for comprehensive sexuality education is increasingly urgent as growing patterns of sexual activity in adolescents, teenage pregnancies, and HIV infections often linked to drug use and multiple sexual partners demand an informed and proactive response.

She says many young people are engaging in sexual activity without adequate understanding of consent, contraception, or the emotional and physical consequences of their actions.

The training officer says teenage girls, in particular, are placed in vulnerable situations due to the lack of open conversations and education on sexual health, leaving them unprepared and at greater risk of unwanted pregnancies and STIs while, many boys grow up without learning about consent, contraception, or how to engage in respectful and equitable relationships

FWRM has also stressed on the need to implement all water, sanitation and hygiene standards in every school through a gendered lens so that students, especially girls, can freely access WASH facilities without compromising their privacy.

She says access to clean toilets, safe water, and appropriate menstrual hygiene management facilities is crucial to upholding girls' health, dignity, and educational outcomes in all their diversity.

She says when these basic needs are unmet, girls are more likely to experience absenteeism during menstruation, contributing to learning disruptions, reduced participation, and increased dropout rates.

Singh says FWRM is particularly concerned about the inaccessibility of sanitary products, unreliable water access, poor lighting, lack of toilet paper, and broken or non-lockable doors in school washrooms-all of which contribute to inadequate privacy, menstrual trauma, and stigma.

FWRM is also calling for urgent reforms to the Education Act to ensure that all schools are legally required to meet minimum standards for water, sanitation and hygiene facilities which includes the provision of clean, private, and safe toilets; access to sanitary products; clean water; proper lighting; and functioning infrastructure.

Singh further says it is also critically important to integrate Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Harassment (PSEAH) and Child Safeguarding and Protection policies across all levels of the education sector.

She says students interact regularly with school staff, administrators, and Ministry of Education employees, making it imperative that all personnel are equipped to prevent and respond to risks of sexual misconduct.

Singh says while the current requirement for school staff to sign Code of Conduct is step in the right direction, it is not enough.

She says FWRM is particularly concerned about the experiences of girls, who continue to face sexual abuse and exploitation both within and outside of school environments.

Singh says the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse must be a universal priority that protects all students, regardless of gender as boys who are survivors often experience intense stigma, while students part of the LGBTQI+ community are at heightened risk due to gender non-conformity and persistent discrimination.

She also says gender-responsive safeguarding training must be made mandatory for all staff within the Ministry of Education and throughout the education sector which includes trainee teachers, for whom such training must be a prerequisite for employment.

While highlighting the acute shortage of trained school counselors, FWRM is also calling on the Ministry of Education to ensure that each school is assigned a qualified, gender-sensitised counsellor who can respond to students' specific emotional, psychological, and gender-related challenges.

She says this responsibility must not fall to teachers, who are already overstretched and may lack the specialised training required to offer practical support.

FWRM is also calling for urgent reforms to make Fiji’s education system truly inclusive for girls with all types of disabilities, not just those with visible impairments.

Singh says the current system fails to address psychological, neurological, and learning disabilities, which often go unnoticed.

While highlighting that over 2,296 students with disabilities are enrolled across 18 special schools and 378 mainstream schools in Fiji, Singh raised concerns over the lack of publicly available data and routine audits to monitor whether schools are consistently providing inclusive services.

Consultation on the Education Act continues at Nausori Parish Hall this afternoon and in Levuka tomorrow.

After issues raised from the consultation on the review of the Education Act 1966 on the need for schools to have qualified counsellors, the Ministry is addressing this issue as more than 30 teachers have been trained counsellors.

While responding to questions from fijivillage News, Minister for Education Aseri Radrodro says they would like to attend to that ASAP in bringing counsellors into the schools, but qualified ones.

He says teachers have been facing challenges in terms of not only providing the learning capacity to the students but also doing more than just teaching.

Radrodro says this is something they would like to explore in the new budget, and hopefully, they will look into addressing those counselling needs in schools.