Teachers strike in support of suspended colleague

TEACHERS at Pallouriotissa Middle School went on strike yesterday in protest against the Ministry of Education’s suspension of a teacher for slapping a female student on the face last week.

The one-hour walkout took place between 8.15am and 9.15am in support of teacher Angeliki Vourkou, after the pupil reported the incident to her parents. They then filed a complaint against Vourkou with the school principal.

Semis Polyviou, Vice-president of the Organisation of Middle School Teachers (Oelmek), said: "Following the complaint, there was a meeting at the school with the student’s parents, the teacher and the Headmistress, Phaedra Papacosta.

"The outcome of this meeting was to move the student to a different class, and (she) would no longer be taught by Vourkou. The school considered the issue to be over, but then the mother went to the police and the Ministry of Education."

Vourkou said she slapped the student when the girl defied numerous requests to stop causing disruptions in clas. The Ministry condemned Vourkou’s act, suspending her.

While Polyviou said Oelmek condemns violence, it considered the suspension of Vourkou too harsh. He said the situation had not been investigated in depth, and expressed surprise at the procedural shortcuts taken after this incident.

In any case, he said Vourkou’s suspension will be lifted within the next three days after a Ministry meeting on Monday about the affair.

The student’s parents claimed their daughter had had an operation on her head, which causes her occasional discomfort.

Polyviou said after looking into the girl’s school records that "her personal records show no signs of ill health. Previous school records indicate no evidence of this claim" by her parents.

Oelmek, which will cover Vourkou’s legal costs, said the events were an unfortunate occurrence in the long career of Vourkou, whom they called an excellent and conscientious teacher.

Vourkou has admitted that slapping the student was unprofessional and wrong.

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