The Union of Professional Educators - Voice of the Workers said today that various aspects of the educational system haven't improved from last year, but on the contrary, have deteriorated. 

The UPE issued a statement after having observed in detail the running of the new scholastic year 2019/2020, which opened this past week.

The union has requested the Education Ministry for a copy of the transport supervision policy. UPE wants to know:

• The ratio of educators to students on regular transport supervision
• The ratio of educators to students on regular transport supervision duties when several special needs are present. 
• The ratio of LSEs to students at resource centres.

It transpires that such ratios are non-existent and should be public knowledge, the union said. The ministry hasn't given such details to is employees, when we know for a fact that it’s the employer's obligation to inform its employees via a circular. 

For this reason, students are not supervised well enough with the probability that certain accidents may occur due to low educator to student ratios, the UPE said.

UPE also noticed a growing trend in precarious transport supervision, where LSEs caring for special needs students have to travel every day to the town where the student lives, leaving his/her car parked there while the school is in another locality.

It is to no surprise that most schools are “indecent working environments” for our children and Educators. Just yesterday it was reported that a Kindergarten class in Santa Venera is in a disastrous state, the union said.

UPE wants to point out that this is not the only school that is in shambles. St Thomas Moore, St Ignatius and the Gozo College have several classrooms that do not have the necessary equipment such as desks, chairs and cabinets. 

Some works have been done in the summer months which unfortunately have spilt into the first days of the scholastic year. 

Educators working in the Gozo College as well as St Theresa College, have been welcomed with plums of dust and scattered furniture all around the school. Due to this health hazard, educators had to clear up the premises on their initiative. 

The union is perplexed that the Ministry of Education and Employment (MEDE) treats its employees in such a manner. Could this be one of the many reasons why educators are leaving the sector, the union asked.

The central administration in MEDE is not forking out enough resources to the Heads of Schools to do the necessary maintenance work, it concluded.

The union urged its members to report such instances to UPE so that immediate action will be taken on the matter.