Education Minister Owen Bonnici, who took over the reins of the sector only last week, said his plan for education is based on four aims.

“I wish to strengthen the educational experience with regard to equality," he said when answering a question by The Malta Independent. "We have already done a lot of work on this, but we need to continue growing. I do not want to see anyone not included in our education sector; we already have students who do not know English or Maltese and some students who come from difficult backgrounds; we need to be sensitive to all of them.”

He said that he wants to strengthen post-secondary education, especially when it comes to non-compulsory education. “I also wish for students to continue to participate in education; we should not look at education as something we finish at 16, 18 or 23.” Following that comment, he was asked whether the compulsory age for education should be raised; as former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat had once indicated.

“The debate is much more than that; we cannot stop at that point. We need to ensure that students take the right path to bring out their best potential. We already have seen the number of students abandoning education decreasing, but this is not enough; we need to continue working on this.”

He said that gaps in the education system should also be addressed to make students experience a more comprehensive one.

He said he is listening to concerns being made by educators. “Our teachers and LSE’s are important elements to this sector, and we need to understand them and I am here to listen to them; I have already received a number of messages from our educators and I am here to listen to them all,” explained Bonnici.

Bonnici was answering questions by journalists after his first school visit as Education and Employment Minister. Earlier he had addressed students and teachers from San Gorg Preca School, thanking the teachers and LSE’s who put in all the hard work educating the future generations.

Speaking to journalists he stated that it makes no difference if you have the most beautiful schools, if there are no teachers to teach. “There has been a lot of good work done, and we want to ensure better for our educators. I believe we must also listen to teachers who are already in the sector and might feel the need to rekindle their ambition.”