School representatives must have 300US

Given the situation in the country and the decay of the infrastructure of the schools in the state of Bolívar, many parents in Guayan are betting that their children will study in private schools in Ciudad Guayan. The decision means assuming a monthly cost of between 50 and 75 dollars.

Looking at prices, registration costs two monthly payments: the first amount, equivalent to one month’s registration fee and the payment of one month’s tuition, which translates into an expense of more than 100 dollars.

According to the data collected, meeting the costs of private schools not only means paying the monthly fee, but it is also necessary to pay for the list of school supplies and textbooks, a requirement that public schools do not make or for which they have greater flexibility.

During 2024 Caroni Mail has visited at least 6 public schools, and has been able to verify the deterioration of their spaces and the lack of public services that the facilities suffer; this situation is the fundamental reason why parents prefer private education as a way of giving peace of mind and well-being to their client.

“To enroll my son, I thought about which school to put him in. Although most are the same, in the range of 70 to 100 dollars. I enrolled him in one that has a monthly fee of 70 dollars. It is like the standard. Monte Carmelo, for example, is already at 100 dollars. The 70 dollar schools are the cheapest group, the ones that are even cheaper are the ones where the school is a house. Very small. They cost about 50 dollars. My son’s school is Martín Lutero and I liked it. I decided to leave him there. The enrollment is for two months, I paid 140 and insurance for the child of 8 dollars. The total just for enrollment was 163 dollars,” said Jorge Díaz, representative of a second grade child.

Other parents interviewed said they prefer to pay for the registration fee at a private school rather than attend a school, since, in addition to the infrastructure problem, there is a significant shortage of teachers, resulting in children attending classes only a few days a week.

“My son attends the Nuestra Señora de Lourdes school. The monthly fee there is 85 dollars. I paid 170 dollars for registration, which is registration for one month, normally you pay for two months. Insurance and everything else is included,” said Edwin González, father of a first grader.

Credit: a tool that allows you to pay for the list of supplies

After paying the tuition fees, the representatives must buy the list of school supplies. At the beginning of August, this newspaper consulted with representatives of public schools and confirmed that these institutions do not require a list of supplies, but that children can bring the materials their parents consider necessary. Even if they do not have the resources, they attend with only one notebook.

In contrast, private schools do request specific texts and school supplies. Caroni Mail had access to the list of supplies of one of the interviewees, whose son is in elementary school, and the list of supplies consists of 4 notebooks, 1 box of crayons, 1 pencil case, 1 pencil, 1 pencil sharpener, 1 eraser, 1 pair of scissors, 2 paintbrushes, 1 geometric set, 1 brown folder, 1 permanent marker and 2 whiteboard markers, 3 sheets of bond paper, 2 double-sided cardboard, 1 liquid glue and 1 stick, 2 crepe paper, 2 silicone sticks, half a ream of paper and a drawing pad. They also ask for 4 textbooks and 1 dictionary.

The price of these materials was checked at a bookstore in Alta Vista, and the quote came to a total of 127 dollars. As a noteworthy fact, a bookstore in Unare offers the same products for 88 dollars.

When asked where one of the interviewees purchased the products, he emphasized that he preferred to buy at Alta Vista, since these bookstores accept the Cashea application as a payment method, allowing him to pay with credit.

“Last year I spent $90 on school supplies. I prefer to pay at Alta Vista because they accept Cashea and I’m going to support myself with that. Librería Latina accepts Cashea and offers a 15% discount if you buy the complete list of school supplies,” said the source.

Depending on the user’s level, the app finances up to 60% of the purchase, allowing parents to access the list of supplies by paying less than half. If they are at level 3 of the purchasing app.

School uniforms range from 70 to 80 dollars

The cost of school uniforms is one of the most flexible options depending on the needs of the person represented and the parents’ budget. While some buy up to three sets of uniforms, others prefer to only vary the shirts and have just one pair of school trousers.

For Jorge Díaz, the school uniform represented an expense of 70 dollars for the last school year. He said that he decided to buy only one item of each item, that is, a single school shirt, a pair of pants and a pair of shoes, which allows him to reduce costs.

“Last year I spent approximately 70 dollars on a school uniform. I bought him just one uniform. If I bought him two pairs of pants and two shirts, I spent more. He wore the same pair of shoes for classes and physical education. If my son were older, I would have to buy different shoes for physical education and general classes,” she explained.

A preschool student representative went shopping for uniforms on September 9 and bought the products at a shopping center in Alta Vista for $140.

“I bought three overalls, three shirts, three shirts, six pairs of socks and some shoes. I spent 140 dollars on them,” he said.

For Ana Márquez, a representative of a 12-year-old girl who will begin her first year of high school, her shopping began in August, when she took advantage of a 50% discount to buy a pair of blue pants and a shirt at a department store for $20.

She also said that she has not yet bought any school supplies or texts, since in high school each teacher often chooses to ask for the book of their choice, so she prefers to wait until classes start.

“The cost of uniforms and supplies is more than 100 dollars. That’s why I’m buying. I already bought her pants and a shirt. Now I’m going to buy her notebooks, my estimate is a minimum of 100 dollars. I’m buying her two sets: two shirts and two pairs of pants. She has to wear overalls for physical education. It starts like this with overalls, pants and shirts. I’m buying little by little. I don’t know about books. She’s going to high school, in primary school there’s only one encyclopedia, but now I think each teacher asks for the book of their preference,” Márquez said.

Schools report high rates of delinquency and dropout

In an interview with Caroni MailVioleta Salas, president of the National Association of Private Educational Institutes in Caroní, explained that due to the political instability of the country, many parents stopped paying their monthly fees and are just now catching up.

He also mentioned the existence of several cases in which representatives decided to emigrate after the electoral process and left significant debts with the schools.

“Many parents left without paying. They spent everything on gasoline and food during the conflict. Enrollment is very slow and it is not only happening in Guayana. Many schools have not yet made a cost structure and are enrolling with the monthly payment from the previous period. The Ministry of Education has only just authorized the cost structure to be made. Parents are just now paying off debts and waiting to enroll. The costs of the monthly payments range from 30 to more than 100 dollars here in Guayana, outside the area there are prices that surprise one,” explained the union spokesperson.

Salas said that they are trying hard to remain operational; however, they are paying their teachers with the salary from the previous period, since there has been no cost restructuring. The average salary is between 150 and 600 dollars, according to surveys carried out by the organization.

“There are cases in which parents migrate their children to public schools. Others also took them to state schools and then returned, that is because the father has to cover himself where the blanket reaches. I had a case that told me that in public it is more expensive because you have to bring absolutely all the supplies. Another issue is that there are many parents who took their children out of the country, left the debt at the school and leave without any paperwork for the child to continue his studies outside the country. It is very sad because they will not have a way to enroll them to continue their schooling,” he lamented..