The Malta Union of Teachers today expressed its reservations about the government’s idea to stretch the role of educators further for them to be responsible for supervision of students while they are being transported to and from school.

In a statement, the MUT referred to reports that teachers have not shown great interest in taking on the role of supervisors, which the union said was not much of a surprise. The MUT said it raised the issue in meetings it had about the proposal.

The MUT said the logistics aspect is one reason why there was a lack of interest, but one cannot also forget that supervising 50 students on a bus is also a serious factor that cannot be ignored. Compensation for offering the service is not enough either, also considering that educators have to arrive at the pick-up point with their own vehicle and then be driven back to it after school hours.

The union appealed to the education authorities to revise the situation.