Two more teachers arrested in clampdown on private lessons

TWO MATHS teachers have been arrested on suspicion of giving illegal private lessons, the Education Ministry said yesterday.

In an ongoing police crackdown against unlicensed private lessons, police in Limassol and Larnaca arrested the teachers. This follows the arrest of another teacher in Limassol last Thursday afternoon, in the first sting operation of its kind.

The police claim to have a list of about 100 suspects, with the Larnaca force saying that they arrested a 44-year-old man on suspicion of “running a private institute without a permit”. He was later released and will appear in court at a later date.

Education Minister Pefkios Georgiades, said yesterday the practice, also known as moonlighting, was “destroying the state school system”.

But the high school teachers’ association, OELMEK, has hit back at the government’s tough stance on the issue, saying that “they are on the wrong path and are not dealing with the problem in the right way”.

They also claim that illegal teaching is a deep-rooted problem that needs to be handled differently.
“It cannot be fixed by this persecution.”

The association goes on to claim that the practice thrives on the weaknesses of the state school system and that a long-term strategy is needed that will enhance the standard of state school education in Cyprus.

An improvement in syllabuses is also needed, while the government should better deal with under-performing students and reduce class numbers, the union said.

OELMEK called on the ministry to resume dialogue with teachers’ unions on how best to tackle the issue.

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