The European Commission’s Education and Training Monitor 2018 report has highlighted Malta’s high levels of early school leavers from education and training along with high levels of underachievement in reading, maths and sciences.

The report found that 18.6% of those aged between 18 and 24 were leaving education and training early, compared to an EU average of 10.6%. This figure is the highest across Europe, with only Spain and Romania having similarly high levels, with 18.3% and 18.1% early school leavers respectively. The EU’s target for education is that by 2020, the level of early school leavers dips below 10%.

At 30%, Malta also had one of the lowest tertiary educational attainment levels, with only Hungary, Italy and Romania having lower such levels. The EU 2020 target for this is that of 40%. 

An early school leaver is defined by the report as a person who hasn’t attained up to an ISCED 2 qualification, meaning lower secondary education. The tertiary educational attainment level is defined by the report as the percentage of those between the ages of 30 and 34 who have successfully completed ISCED level 5 to 8 qualifications. That equates to anything between a short-cycle tertiary course and a doctoral degree.

The report also found that there was a high proportion of 15 year olds who were underachieving in reading, maths and science. It found that 35.6% were underachievers in reading, 29.1% in maths and 32.5% in science. These figures do not compare kindly with the EU average, which is 19.7% for reading, 22.2% for maths and 20.6% for science.

More positively, Malta was found to have an exceptionally high employment rate of recent graduates by educational attainment, with the rate being 94.5%, the highest across the EU. Only Denmark and the Netherlands register levels of 90% or over, whilst the EU average is 80.2%.

In its summary of Malta, the European Commission highlighted the country’s heavy investment in education and the importance of civic education, especially given that the voting age has been lowered to 16 years of age. It also highlighted that the transition from education to the labour market is easier than in most other EU countries.

The commission’s summary read that whilst there had been improvements registered since 2014, there was still cause for concern in the high levels of early school leavers and the low levels of tertiary educational attainment. 

 

PN: “Figures show the difference between words and facts”

 

Reacting to this report, the PN, through their Education spokesperson Clyde Puli, said that the report shows that the despite the Labour government’s promises that Malta would be amongst the best in Europe in the educational sector, after six years in government Malta was amongst the worst in Europe instead.

The statement by the PN read that the fact that Malta was third last in how many foreign students felt at home in schools shows that the government has embarked on an immigration strategy without an effective plan for integration.

The party also noted that in terms of how effective the government’s spending was in education, Malta registers negative results in comparison with other countries that spend less but gain results which are much better than Malta.

The PN said that it was the students suffering for the difference between the government’s words and the facts, saying that with such low achievements in their educational paths they would be condemned to a life of low salaries, even more so when they have to compete with the “cheap labour that the government is importing”.

 

Education ministry welcomes report

 

The education ministry welcomed the report, noting decreases in the early school leaving rate and the increases in tertiary attainment, employment rates of graduates and adult participation in learning.

The ministry acknowledged that the rate of school leavers is higher than the EU average but said that it is important to note that historically the Maltese rate was very high and that the decreases noted over the past years are four times larger than the EU average decreases in this area, indicating the Malta is quickly catching up with its European counterparts.

The ministry also welcomed positive remarks by the European Commission relating to the modernisation of the education system, participation in early childhood education and the collective agreement which, the report said, "has paved the way for several reforms".

It said that over the coming months, the ministry will be working with the European Commisson and stakeholders to showcase the steps taken over the past years to further improve the high standards of the education sector.

 

Labour: PN isn't capable of appreciating what is good

 

The PL took aim at the PN for its criticism, saying that it had to be the opposition party to take a report which put the country in very positive light on a large number of educational indicators and spin it in such a negative manner.

Similarly to the government's statement, Labour pointed out the positive elements of the report which showed decreases in tertiary attainment levels and decreases in the early school leavers rate.  They pointed out the high number of graduates finding employment, which the PN's statement made no mention of.

The PL said that even where Malta remained below the EU average, things were improving at a fast rate and that if this pace of improvement is retained, the country will not only reach the EU averages but better them.

The statement read that in the past five years, the budget for the education sector had increased by 50%, and that had resulted in stpend increases, new alterative and vocational programmes and many other measures.  

The PN meanwhile, the PL said, had reduced stipends and left teachers and lecturers without enough salaries during their last year in government.  They also accused the PN of hiding or not carrying out reports in the educational sector so that the EU does not share such mis-givings within the sector in public.