Parental classes and guidance to stop teenage boys getting girls pregnant were called for by the Opposition last night.

Shadow Education Minister said parental classes were used as a sanction for those who broke the code of conduct expected of them under last year?s Education Amendment Act.

But he said there should be classes available through Family Services for those parents who simply wanted to improve.

Education Minister said help was available. ?We do a lot of counselling through the Child Development Programme.?

Opposition Home Affairs spokesman said he welcomed the extra funding for Teen Services to help pregnant mums continue with their education.

But he said if no money was spent on stopping the problem before it started then the funding would continue for ever. Teenage boys needed to be told how to behave, said Mr. Burgess.

?It isn?t good enough to simply fund one half of the equation.?

Mr. Darrell complained about the costs of education which rose without an equivalent rise in performance.

And he noted only 62 percent of Bermuda?s students attended public schools, of which only 20 percent were white.

Around three quarters of white children attended private schools noted Mr. Darrell.

He said the ratio of students attending private schools in Bermuda was far higher than elsewhere. In Canada just five percent went private, seven percent did so in the UK while 11 percent did in America.

However Mr. Lister said the $500 million spent on education since 1999 had been worth it.

He said the $10,551 spent per child per year were higher than costs in the private sector because public schools could not refuse anyone, thus children with problems had to be dealt with.

?We have a whole bevy of psychologists and behavioural therapists who don?t exist in the private system.?

Both sides of the House chewed over the problems of performance at M3 level. Mr. Burgess said children were trying to find who they were at that age but parents were often wanting to spending less time with their children at that stage.

Mr. Lister said the Ministry was not satisfied with results at M3.

?They are putting more attention, time and money to get it right.?

It was crucial to curb problems at that stage before they increased at the senior level, said Mr. Lister.

Mr. Burgess questioned why spending on materials had fallen this year from $5 million to $4.5 million.

But the Minister explained the zero-budgeting process, in which Ministries started from scratch rather than base the new budget on the old one, had given a clearer picture of what was needed.

?I am saying we needed $4.3 million last year and this year we need $4.5 million.?

However Mr. Burgess said: ?We hear horror stories of teachers photo-stating books to keep themselves going. We hear horror stories of teachers going into their own pockets.?

Teachers had been pushed enough already, said Mr. Burgess, and had been forced to strike for higher pay.

He said the Government had been the only ones to think the teachers had not deserved a big pay rise while the arbitration panel, the children and the teachers had thought differently.

In order to readdress the huge preponderance of female teachers and to increase black male role models in schools, Mr. Burgess called for head hunting of suitable candidates.

Probed on why the new Berkeley was due to cost more than $102 million in the Budget when Government had said it would be $101 million, Mr. Lister said the first figure was the estimate when the budget book was printed but the latter figure was the correct figure and had come after subsequent negotiations had worked in Government?s favour.

Mr. Burgess expressed fears that the decision to downsize St. George?s Prep would lead to children having to travel as far as Prospect to get their education and they would lose the comfort of being educated among their own.

He repeated his call for a new technical institute offering training as well as academic qualifications.