There has been a long-understood knowledge of the fact that the education system in Malta – once one of the best – had slipped, perhaps not so much in standards, but more in keeping up with the times.

The purpose of this editorial is not to draw daggers and attack the education system, but rather to perhaps offer some practical and sideward glance suggestions that could help make schools a more fun place to learn.

The Malta Union of Teachers and the government have already signed an agreement, covering some 70 proposals which are intentioned to radically change the way schools operate in Malta.

The major undertone seems to be the movement away from an examination orientated system to one that focuses more on assessment and development over the years. And not before time. Kids are precisely what they are – kids. The workloads that children have (after a hard day’s school) are simply ridiculous, they are overburdened to the point that learning becomes a chore to them.

There are some who are so stressed out at exam time that they fall on medication – surely that cannot be healthy in the slightest. One could possibly even draw the conclusion that for some, what are supposed to be the most fun years of their lives, are turned into years of trauma and stress.

We are not saying that children and teenagers should not be tested and pushed – far from it. But what we are saying is that we can sometimes go overboard and instead of cultivating their knowledge and creativity, we can stymie it.

There are many other areas, which with some simple thought and planning, can go a long way into helping kids cope better at school. Here’s one, and trust the point, it’s not exactly rocket science. Most state schools abroad (and private of course) have lockers for all kids to use to store their books, notes, gym kits, football shoes, (hell, hang a poster even, it might brighten life up a bit) and other bits and bobs. How many times have you driven past a 4 foot high 11-year-old with a school bag that probably weighs more than the student? It’s simple, all schools should get it done. Of course, the school should have the right to access these lockers if they have any reason to believe there could be something untoward in them.

And another one hot off the press. Organise more sports. Again, drawing on experience gained abroad – students in the UK get four hours of sports every week. Granted, school hours and semesters are shorter here – but get this – if schools organised after school hours sports lessons (and we do not mean the silly attempts to play football, basketball and volley), we are sure that kids would jump at the chance to stay on for these activities (might even help the obesity problem too).

Sports instructors should be available to teach school children all forms of disciplines such as gymnastics, track and field (javelin, long jump, discus etc…). On that note, perhaps the construction of more readily available gym and track facilities might also help.

Another two areas which could be developed much further than it is today are amateur dramatics and music. These suggestions might be brushed aside as fancy talk, or they might be taken on board. What is sure is that the government is committed to providing good quality education to all with the best possible facilities – and we are sure that they will do a good job. But, many scientific studies are now showing that kids learn more when they are having fun and it is quite easy to entertain them. Now it’s up to us to show that creative spark which can perhaps set theirs off.