We just got back a week ago from San Pedro and while we saw some children in school uniforms practicing for the Christmas pageant, there were other younger children selling jewellery on the beach, aged about 7-10 years old, and I was wondering whether there was "free" education available to all, or whether schooling had to be paid for.

From reading a couple of other threads here, people have been discussing a private school, but I just wondered if every child is guaranteed an education, in San Pedro and also on the mainland. It didn't occur to me originally that these young kids should have been in school, I thought they must be out on Christmas holiday from school.... maybe they were, just had different school holidays from the other kids I saw in uniforms.

It varies as to the area. Not all areas have public schools, many only have church run schools and they have to pay. Many do not attend school. I cannot say about San Pedro as I do not live there, but in the rest of Belize most have to pay to go to school. It is a big strain on a Belizean family budget.

My understanding is there are over 100 children in San Pedro that do not attend school. The Rendezvous Jazz Festival and the Calendar Girls are both raising funds to add classroom space and to provide scholarships to allow these children to get an education. There are some public schools in Belize, but most are built by churches, the teachers are paid by the government and the children pay some amount as tuition and have to pay for supplies. I don't have children in the system, but that is the way I have been told by other parents that it works.

scubawalk is correct. The family must pay a tuition, purchase uniforms, buy supplies etc, etc. This is a very costly effort for some families in San Pedro. The San Pedro Social Club has under advisement a plan to donate a substantial amount of funds to assist in the construction of additional classrooms in conjuction with the Calendar Girls project. We also have under advisement a plan to assist thoes families that need help in paying tuitions and assisting in a meal plan for a select few that really need it, as well as purchasing text books for the school. If you would like to contribute to this effort, please go to our website and hit the PayPal button.

www.sanpedrosc.org

What is the cost per???

Any amount accepted. Please use the PayPal function at www.sanpedrosc.org

It is against the law not to send your children to school. All children go to school in Belize through (US eight) standard six.

SIN

Supposed to go to school until you're 14 years old.

San Pedro Primary School (Catholic/Government subsidised) is around $85 Bze per year - plus books, plus uniforms plus your own desk, plus occassional donations for fundraising events.

All in all probably costs around $500 US per student per year.

San Pedro High School costs more, I would estimate about $1,000 US per student per year because there are science and computer lab fees.

The private schools are 2 - 3 times as much.

For those who live in the community and wish to donate who do they see? Paypal will not accept payment from Belize IP addresses.