SECONDARY school teachers across Cyprus will walk out of class today in protest over a spate of attacks against colleagues in the past month.
This month alone has seen five separate incidents in which teachers have been physically attacked, abused or threatened.
But the teachers have received little sympathy from the Ministry of Education, which has told teachers their salaries would be docked if they abandoned their classrooms today.
The Ministry’s Director of Secondary Education, Andreas Skotinos, issued an announcement on Monday warning teachers to think again.
“The walk-out of teachers during the sixth and seventh period of school on November 9, 2005 will endanger the smooth operations of the schools and also jeopardise the safety of the pupils. Such instructions can only be given out by the Director of Secondary Education.
“The Secondary Education Department is therefore calling on the teachers to refrain from any such action and is calling all the relevant authorities to report to the Ministry any teacher that walks out of a classroom during the sixth and seventh period.”
Niki Mattheou, head of the technical school teachers’ union OLTEK, told the Cyprus Mail they did not approve the way secondary teachers’ union OELMEK was reacting, but did agree on the fact that something needed to be done.
“I believe OELMEK should have informed us on what they were planning to do because it is vital that the parents, pupils and all the teachers sit down together to decide how they are going to the tackle the current problems.
“Dialogue is most important thing right now and we do not believe that abandoning the lessons is the right move right now.”
But OELMEK chairman Iacovos Iacovou said his union had no choice but to take desperate measures.
“With all due respect, I think OLTEK should mind their own business. It is true that we need dialogue but we will be orchestrating the dialogue tomorrow around the schools on the island. The dialogue will consist of teachers, pupils and parents and we will be aiming to put an end to the unacceptable problems that teachers are currently facing. The problems we are facing have reached a very serious level and action must be taken.”
Iacovou was unimpressed with the Education Ministry’s threat.
“We find the comments of the Ministry of Education totally unacceptable for two reasons. One: the Ministry says we are overreacting over a single incident whereas it is not just a single incident – we have five recorded incidents as well as many more that have yet to be recorded. And two, the Ministry should realise that in this modern society that will not intimidate or scare unions by threatening to dock their salaries.”
The Chairman of the House Education Committee Nicos Tornarites also called on OELMEK not to go ahead with today’s protest.
“I do not feel any good will come out of stopping the pupils from attending their lessons. Of course, we understand the problems that they are having and a solution is needed – but protesting in that way is not the correct way to go about trying to resolve the problem. What is needed is a properly orchestrated dialogue.”
Education Minister Pefkios Georgiades was unavailable for comment.
Catalogue of violence
OELMEK chairman Iacovos Iacovou yesterday outlined the five recent incidents, which have provoked the union to calling today’s walkout:
n A parent walked into a classroom and threatened to throw a teacher out of the window. “This act was obviously seen as terrorising not only the teacher but also the pupils,” he said. The incident occurred about a month ago.
n A pupil attacked a teacher in the staff room because he had been given an unexcused absence.
n A girl pulled a female teacher’s hair and threw her to the ground. The pupil actually ripped a tuft of hair from the teacher.
n A female pupil rounded up a gang of other girls and attacked a female teacher in the school car park.
n The fifth incident occurred between two neighbouring schools. Around 100 pupils from the Technical School grabbed various dangerous objects and attacked around 100 pupils from the Lyceum next door. The police were called in to intervene and there were some injuries as a result of the mass fight.
What has brought about this disturbing change in pupil behaviour?
By John Leonidou
CHILD Psychologist Doros Michaelides believes that violence in the family and on the television has taken the biggest toll on the behaviour of youngsters in today’s society.
“Unfortunately, children are growing up in a society where violence is all around them and especially violence in the world media and their own families.
“This makes youngsters get used to violence and they are not shocked by what they see. Violence also prompts the pupils to stand up for what they believe in and for them this is not out of the ordinary because they believe that they are fighting for their rights.
“Another problem is that pupils cannot adjust to school regulations, especially if they feel that they are being treated unfairly. Pupils also attach themselves to groups of friends and find a safety net in that group, allowing them to feel that they can react how they want.”
Michaelides explained how vital it was for pupils to start looking at teachers as human beings rather than just disciplinarians whose only job was to hand out grades.
“Pupils have to gain the trust of their teacher and see them as a person they can talk to rather than just a person who simply gives them grades. I’m sure a lot of us can remember a teacher when we were back in school, to whom we could all relate. We need to have more of these teachers.”
But simply abandoning classrooms will do little to solve the problem, which, according to Michaelides, has not been properly addressed by society.
“The problem will not go away, but what we can do is try and make the situation better. The best solution is to try and create a dialogue between the parents, the school and various sectors of society to see what can be done to bridge the gap between teachers and pupils. It is not just parents at fault in some cases but also teachers and us experts who are also to blame for letting the problem get to where it has gone.”
Technical school teachers’ union head Niki Mattheou also believes society has played a significant role in the degradation of children’s behaviour.
“People must understand that the general behaviour of society is reflected in schools. Youngsters and especially teenagers mimic what they see in everyday life, whether it be violence on television or arson attacks and robberies in the news and unfortunately that can have an effect on youth.
“Teenagers are more confused and rebellious and act in ways that they themselves cannot understand sometimes. They need to be taught the dangers of their actions, especially when they attack people. Some of these attacks could result in fatal injuries.”
Mattheou agreed with Michaelides’ point that teachers and pupils needed to bond better together.
“The best way to tackle the behaviour problem is by reaching out to pupils. We have to nurture them and we shouldn’t be confrontational because I believe this will only make them retaliate more. A teacher shouldn’t just walk into a classroom and say to the pupils ‘be quiet so I can teach the lesson’. A teacher should be reaching out to the pupils.”
