The tit-for-tat discussion between the Malta Union of Teachers and Education Minister Louis Galea this week was uncalled for and did little to tackle a growing problem in schools in Malta and Gozo.
Over the past 10 weeks, there have been five attacks on teachers by students or parents – the most recent one on 8 February.
Although the government and the MUT raised a number of important points in their statements to the media, the debate on a delicate matter such as school discipline was at times reduced to petty bickering, instead of attempts to find a solution.
The tit-for-tat discussion did, however, reveal that the minister and the teachers’ union do not see eye-to-eye on some issues.
Although both agree that a zero-tolerance attitude is a must, the MUT feels that the authorities should deal with disciplinary problems in a different way than they are doing, as punishments are not serving as a deterrent to other students.
This raises a very important matter – that of discipline. Maintaining discipline in a classroom is not easy and with corporal punishment – thankfully now a thing of the past – the teacher must use other means to control unruly students.
Discipline in the class should not be the sole prerogative of the teacher, but every school should have established procedures and guidelines to ensure that students are treated equally and teachers know what the limits of punishment should be.
We would suggest, however, that the education system in Malta be provided with a set of guidelines prepared by the Education Ministry and that these should be applied when cases of serious unruly behaviour or violence occur.
For example, are the punishments being meted out for physical attacks on teachers enough? The MUT doesn’t think so. Are these punishments serving as a deterrent to other students? The MUT doesn’t think so either. Is the transferring of unruly students to other schools resolving the problem?
Teachers are dealing with some students whose backgrounds make them tougher than the average meek student who is shocked at the mention of the word “detention”. But unruly students might see nothing wrong with attacking someone physically, and this is where the authorities must come in with tougher punishments.
The MUT and the government disagree on the number of times teachers have been physically or verbally abused. The number may be low if one takes into account the incidents that are “reported” and the number of students that attend schools, but there surely are many teachers who “accept” the abuse and just get on with the job.
This should not happen. Teachers must have enough confidence in the system to be able to report even the minor cases of abuse, knowing that they have the backing of the school authorities and that the student will receive adequate punishment.
The whole debate between the MUT and the Education Ministry should focus on instilling more discipline in schools.
The smack on the hand with a ruler or leather strap is not accepted anymore. We are not suggesting the reintroduction of corporal punishment in schools, however we do agree that there has to be a higher level of discipline.
The authorities have to be careful not to allow a situation develop whereby students start to feel they are above authority.
Students must understand that they have a right to an education, but they are duty bound to do – within the context of the school – what the teacher tells them to do.
If not, then they should be punished in a fair and equitable manner.
Probably, the most important statement in the MUT-Minister exchange was that it must be ensured that the “right of teachers to teach and of students to learn” must be safeguarded.