The Ministry for Education said that the number of educators being recruited is 'significantly higher' than educator resignations, a statement said Saturday.

The Ministry referred to recent information presented by the Education Minister in Parliament related to the education sector, and the number of educators who were hired, and who resigned.

The statement showed a table with the different grades of an educator. There were 51 teachers who resigned, but 177 more were hired.

The statement showed that there were 33 Learning Support Educators (LSE) who resigned, but 71 were hired. Two Kindergarten Educators resigned, with two more hired.

There was only one Assistant Head who resigned, while 25 others were hired. The total number of resignations was that of 87 educators, while those hired amounted to 275.

"It can be noted that in every case, the number of hires was significantly higher than the resignations. In fact, when compared to the overall educator population, the affected ratio was 1.1% for resignations and 3.7% for hires.

The Ministry said it ensures that a meeting is held with each official who has submitted a resignation, during which, among other things, the reason for the resignation is discussed.

In several cases, these employees remain within the education sector and even start employment in higher education institutions, where their expertise is needed due to the increasing number of students continuing education after completing secondary school.

This comes in the context of Malta's early school-leaver rate continuing to decline, the statement said.