With only a week away from the start of the new school year, it should be ensured that students be given a chance to pursue their studies, irrespective of their marks in external examinations.

These are the words of Fiji Teachers Association president Jai P. Narayan in light of concerns raised by parents that their children were not being accepted into certain schools, after being told they did not achieve the required entry marks in the exams.

Narayan said every child cannot score a high mark and setting certain criteria for students to be accepted in schools will rob them of opportunities that secondary schools provide.