The vice president of Bermuda College has called for the Education Ministry to be disbanded after claiming students were leaving high school with an average ability of a 13-year-old.

Dr. Donald Peters told The Royal Gazette academic standards in the Island's public schools were so low that about 70 percent of students who applied for a place at the college did not meet the requirements.

He said the college accepted sub-standard students on the condition that they did an additional one or two years work, but he said it should not be the college's responsibility to bring pupils up to an acceptable level.

And he said if his children lived on the Island, he would not send them to public school, but he would pay instead to have them educated privately.

"The education system in Bermuda is so bad, it cannot be reformed -- it has to be revolutionised,'' said Dr. Peters.

"I believe education as a whole should be taken away from Government. It is obviously not serving children very well and nobody seems remotely bothered about it.

"They talk about wanting the people of Bermuda to have the good, well-paid posts. Well, they need to start with how they educate people and they are not doing it very well.

"I believe that some people in Bermuda have decided that just a few will get on and do well for themselves, and the rest will be left to wash dishes.

"I can't believe any country would allow a system like that to go on and on for years when it has the budget to put it right.

"They should shut down the ministry and put the resources into schools.

Parents could run them better.'' Dr. Peters spoke to The Royal Gazette during the college's weekend of celebration to mark the opening of its new Centre for Education.

He said it was time people thought about public education and how it could help to shape Bermuda's future.

But he said as the system stood, hundreds of children were being failed by the Government every year.

Dr. Peters added: "They lowered the standards in public schools 20 years ago and, as a result, the standards of pupils have fallen.

"The system is not rigorous or demanding enough and the exams and the curriculum are not internationally recognised. They cannot be measured.

"When a large proportion of students in the ninth grade can't read, you know you have a problem.

"We need to visit Hong Kong, St. Lucia, or England, and take their curriculum and bring it back here. We need to get back to basics.

"At the moment Government is spending $68 million a year on education, amounting to about $8,000 per child. It may as well just give that money to the parents for them to spend on a private education. They would be better off.'' Dr. Peters arrived in Bermuda to take up his post at Bermuda College three years ago, and he said he was astounded at the poor academic standards of many pupils applying to take up courses.

He said he believed education only took place between a teacher and a pupil and Government bureaucracy only got in the way.

See story on Victor Scott School row below Government gets failing grade on education Last night, Education Minister Milton Scott was not available for comment.

But Dr. Peters' comments were mirrored by Shadow Education Minister Tim Smith.

He agreed that something needed to be done to shake up the system.

The opposition MP said: "I can agree with Dr. Peters that education is not receiving an adequate and proper focus.

"The current Government prefers things controlled at the centre, where as I believe more de-centralisation is necessary.

"It's been 20 months and I don't sense a monumental shift in thinking or action as it relates to education and the current Government.'' Dr. Donald Peters EDUCATION ED