Every September should feel like progress. Students should be returning to classrooms that are safe, fully staffed and ready to inspire. Teachers should be feeling supported, not overburdened.

Parents should know exactly what lies ahead. Sadly, in Bermuda today, too many families are returning to uncertainty.

The Government pledged to eliminate middle schools and replace them with parish primary schools and stronger senior programmes.

This year, Elliot and Harrington Sound will open as the first parish primary schools. Yet older students remain caught in a cycle of shifting promises.

Instead of confusion, we need a clear and published transition map showing exactly where each year group will be learning — from this September through the next two years. Parents should not need rumours or guesswork to know their child’s path.

Reform cannot succeed if classrooms are not ready and teachers are stretched thin. Every year we hear about unfinished works, a shortage of substitutes and counsellors sharing limited space.

The Opposition believes the first priority must be classroom readiness. That means completing facility upgrades before term starts, guaranteeing every school has functioning student-support spaces, and ensuring health and safety standards are published and met.

At the same time, we need a teacher-first approach: build a reliable substitute pool, expand para-educator support and fast-track recruitment to keep class sizes manageable. No reform can succeed without teachers who feel valued and supported.

The Government has spoken of an education authority in multiple throne speeches. We agree — but it must be independent and transparent. That means publishing true literacy and numeracy outcomes, graduation rates, and attendance data on a regular basis. It means quarterly reports that parents and teachers can access so progress is measured by results, not announcements.

This year’s education budget is the largest in history, yet the budget still displays the high cost of TN Tatem because the accounting still has not been updated to show where the money is actually being spent.

The Opposition would prioritise direct investment in students and teachers — upgrading facilities, hiring staff, increasing counselling services and funding learning resources. Parents must see that dollars are being spent where they make the greatest impact.

Back-to-school should not be about uncertainty; it should be about opportunity. The Opposition’s approach is clear:

• Publish and update a national transition map for all year groups

• Guarantee classroom readiness before Day 1

• Put teachers first through staffing, support and morale-building

• Establish an independent education authority with public performance measures

• Prioritise classroom investment

• Report progress quarterly so the public can see results, not spin

Our children deserve more than promises. They deserve delivery. And Bermuda deserves an education system that builds confidence, trust and excellence from the first day of term to the last.

• Ben Smith is the deputy leader of the One Bermuda Alliance, the Shadow Minister of Education and Sport, and the MP for Smith’s South (Constituency 8)