Fiona Galea Debono
Principal asks for special curriculum for Cospicua's failing pupils
The Cospicua state primary school is taking the unprecedented step of asking the Education Minister to authorise a special curriculum after all its pupils failed the last junior lyceum exam in May.
Sandro Spiteri, the principal of St Margaret College, under which the school falls, said he was personally and professionally satisfied with the teachers, who have achieved results in the past. But the school faced particular problems that demanded particular solutions.
An action committee, including school representatives, the Cospicua mayor and social welfare agencies Aċċess and Appoġġ, has been set up to delve into the problem and suggest solutions, changes to the curriculum and the way the school interacts with the community.
The detailed proposals will be presented to Education Minister Dolores Cristina by the end of December to be implemented immediately. Mr Spiteri said: "We cannot wait!"
The situation was discussed yesterday when Ms Cristina visited the school.
Mr Spiteri said that, considering the poverty rate, the vulnerability of the families and the housing problems in the area, the results were not surprising. "It would have been a miracle had we achieved the national average in Cospicua."
Mr Spiteri said these social realities were affecting the pupils as well as the teachers who suffered daily stress and a fear of being beaten up.
"We have to admit that all this affects the morale of the teachers. They are doing their best in a very difficult situation. We, therefore, need tools that are different from what other schools have, including regular drama therapy, for example."
Mr Spiteri said the failure of the students had instilled a strong sense of disaffection and families were disheartened. But investment in the college's "state-of-the-art" new Verdala boys' secondary school, where they moved on to, was having a positive effect on their self-concept.
The Cospicua school also needed to build on its strengths, including the strong sense of community and its close interconnection with social services, Mr Spiteri said.
One of the college's major advantages was that it catered for students until Form V, so none would be lost, he said. But the plan was to catch them from the start and the committee would not only be focusing on crisis management but would be working with the families before their children attended the school.
Among the initiatives due to kick off is a homework club to tackle what are known as latchkey children, who have nowhere to go after school and return to an empty home.
Mr Spiteri predicted, however, that the fruit of recent changes would not be reaped before another three years.
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catherine caruana
Oct 31st 2008, 17:37
Attention Ms.Galea and Ms.Aquilina.1.As far as I know there is only one Church school in the Cottonera area that gears students for JL.exams.This school does not have classes at secondary level. So it is the main aim of the principal to see that if possible all its students make it to JLThe students hence are stressed so much with homework and extra work that only the brightest make it .The less bright lag behind.I do not think that this is the right way of preparing children for exams.I happen to teach children who attend church schools and do not make it to JL..Point 2.In such schools most parents support their children in their studies and that counts a lot for children to pass their exams. point 3. In church schools heads have the authority to expel children with disruptive behaviour.This cannot happen in a government school.So far nothing has been done about this situation in a government school.One rowdy child can disrupt a whole class that wants to carry on with lessons.Hope these answers have satisfied your questions.
caruana catherine
Oct 31st 2008, 09:38
I fully agree with what Ms.Camilleri has written.I too happen to have a relative who has been teaching in this school for the last eight years and I can say that you have to be a really dedicated teacher to stay teaching at this school ,as most of the parents and students have no respect for authority whatsoever.Besides most of the behaviour of children is not what is expected of ordinary pupils.Here I take the opportunity to say well done to teachers and heads who with great patience and dedication go day in day out to the school premises to teach and educate such children.
l Galea
Oct 31st 2008, 08:46
Franco Farrugia, Joseph Schembri, a.mangion Can you please explain otherwise?
joyce aquilina Good observation
joyce aquilina
Oct 31st 2008, 07:16
so why is it that children from cospicua who attend church schools pass their JL exams?
Catherine Caruana
Oct 31st 2008, 05:52
I fully agree with what Mr.Camilleri has just written as I too happen to have a relative who has now been teaching in this school for quite a number of years . From what she tells me about the atrocious behaviour of parents and students and their complete disregard of authority I can say that you have to be a really dedicated teacher to teach in such circumstances.Very well done to all teachers and heads who in such circumstances and in spite of everything go on these premises to educate such students.Do not be discouraged by negative comments that the blind publc is passing at you.
p scerri
Oct 30th 2008, 20:50
Clearly there is something wrong with the system. There are also perfectly normal families living in Cospicua, whose children attend these schools. Maybe, just maybe, some of the teachers sent here do not have the initiative - given the fact they have a taboo before even arriving.
I do not think after hours is a solution - its the quality of teaching.
Nor do I think homework help is an answer - in our day we got home from school and did our homework - with no help - if we made a mistake it was corrected but at least we tried and not had others do it for us - and most of us were high achievers or at least passed our exams. Sometimes 'helping' too much is letting the children off easily. For example 'handouts' or photocopies - what can a child learn from them if they hardly ever look at them. Let a child write it out - evening copying a sentence is learning.
a.mangion
Oct 30th 2008, 19:50
@ Charles camilleri
I agree with you. The problem is a long standing one originating from the war. Before the war some of Malta's leading figures hailed from the Cottonera. As war broke out these people moved out to safer places and never returned. Their place was taken up by low income lower class families attracted by low rent. this formed into a vicious circle where the three cities were almost ostracized by the rest of malta resulting in the collective lowering of self esteem.
Nowadays one can hardly find any one who's ancestors lived in Cottonera. The problem is a very complex one and not easily solved. it is a social problem not just educational and everybody must give a hand to find a solution. First and foremost the stigma must be removed. this can be done from both sides of the fence. The cottonerans must start proving that they are not inferior and the rest must stop labeling the people of Cottonera as lower class citizens.
Charles Camilleri
Oct 30th 2008, 19:14
@ A Mangion. The answer as to why pupils from the cities fair badly at the Junior lyceum Exams is because all those families who improve their position move out of these cities and are often replaced with others, (attracted by low rents) of the lower strata. Many of these are broken families and whatever Mr. Spiteri says it is very hard to see some improvement in these schools. I am saying this because i had relatives teaching in these schools and they simply could not stick it especially when the parents instead of supporting the teachers often come to beat them.
a.mangion
Oct 30th 2008, 18:25
@ I Galea
Why the conspiracy theory? coming from you I smell political overtones. The Cottonera is a depressed area whether you like to admit it or not, for whatever reason or because of whoever's fault. Being surrounded by fortifications, the people of Cottonera still suffer, subconciously perhaps from a siege mentality. notice that Cospicua, Senglea and Birgu had a lower pass mark than their neighbour Kalkara who did quite well considering its location in the South. Marsascala also in the South is among the high flyers in education. So, being in the South does not necessarily have to do with bad results. The reasons why the three cities fair so badly need to be assessed seriously.
Joseph Schembri
Oct 30th 2008, 17:57
@ i galea: Are you serious or just kidding? Do you truly suspect an x-file style of conspiracy?
Franco Farrugia
Oct 30th 2008, 17:44
@ I. Galea - Respectfully, sir, I think you have been watching far too many films about the planet Mars and the Martians.
a.mangion
Oct 30th 2008, 16:48
And what would extension of school hours achieve? more frustrated children who are already fed up with the hours they spend in school as it is. The solution is to make learning fun and not a bore with the kind of curiculum presently in force. The trick to education at primary age is to teach children without them knowing that they are 'learning' by that I mean making lessons fun and attractive. They way things stand is children are bombarded with a lot of useless information (take a look at the social studies syllabus) children need to get out of school more and experience the world hands on. We need to turn education into a beautiful adventure. who can blame children if they get bored and distracted when they have to sit day in day out in the same class looking at the same charts and writing down the same instructions? where is the chance to be creative and to express themselves?
l Galea
Oct 30th 2008, 13:52
How about extending school hours and also conducting evening classes if necessary?
How about an INDEPENDENT revision of papers, because it seems impossible that not a single child had passed his/her examination.
Is there any taboo or plot about children from Bormla and the southern part of Malta?
martin portelli
Oct 30th 2008, 13:33
Doesn't anyone find it incredible that curriculum changes proposed for the past twenty years have remained unimplemented, yet the Action committee for Cospicua primary school is expected to come up with recommendations for a school based curriculum within 2 months!
Franco Farrugia
Oct 30th 2008, 13:31
@ V Farrugia - School finishes when it is the right time for it to finish. If both parents work, then the parents have enough money to hire a nanny.
Anthony Magri
Oct 30th 2008, 12:38
It is unbelievable that not a single student from Bormla school did qualify for entry in the junior lyceum. Napoleon used to say "Impossible" is not French. In Maltese it has been proved "yes" it is. An inquiry is called for such as independent revision of papers.
V Farrugia
Oct 30th 2008, 11:17
With both parents working, more and more chidren are becoming 'latch-key children' for the simple, stupid reason that school finishes too early. The homework club should be available for all pupils, not just the Cospicua ones.
Ronald Formosa
Oct 30th 2008, 10:53
Excellent approach about how things should be done.
I also recommend a smaller teacher - student ratio so that we will give these pupils and students an opportunity to do well.
And the department should support all teachers involved to the hilt.
Charles Sammut
Oct 30th 2008, 10:51
"Mr Spiteri said that, considering the poverty rate, the vulnerability of the families and the housing problems in the area, the results were not surprising"
Come on Mr Spiteri. Would you have us believe that all your students come from poor, vulnerable and homeless families? Impossible!
The truth is that a minority are disadvantaged in one or more of these ways. And the truth is that mixing of students leads to these disastrous results. I mean, you can hardly go lower than that! If this were to be in Japan, Mr Spiteri would feel obliged to commit harakiri.
Another practical argument against the abolition of streaming. Diversity does not lead to strength, no matter how many expensive publicity campaigns are undertaken to push this lie.
Parents must not be hoodwinked into accepting such arguments.
C Cassar
Oct 30th 2008, 10:40
In Malta currently we have the worst of all worlds in state education. We insist on rigid streaming, supposedly to ensure that teaching in each class is tailored to the abilities of the pupils. But then we insist with equal rigidity that all pupils of all abilities should follow exactly the same curriculum. What's the point of putting children through lessons in complex subjects when they barely know how to read, let alone write, and their command of English is virtually zero?
It seems perfect common sense to me that in such cases the standard curriculum should be dumped and the emphasis placed on basic literacy - preferably in small classes. But doing so would mean acknowledging that we have serious problems in some of our state schools, and the powers that be prefer to bury their heads in the sand.
Finally someone has broken the taboo and acknowledged the problems. Kudos to Mr Spiteri for having had the courage to do so. I hope that the Education Division and the MUT will support him in his efforts to tackle the problems.
joyce aquilina
Oct 30th 2008, 10:05
And by the way in Cospicua I believe that it is the least mentioned school of teachers being attacked, we hear about it all over Malta
joyce aquilina
Oct 30th 2008, 09:51
It seams that Mr Spiteri is blaming the children as he is asking for a special curriculum.
I am from Cospicua and both my sons attended Cospicua primary school,my youngest son finished there 6 years ago and he passed his JL exams and he also passed his church school exams only now he is stuck in this cobweb of the ICT coarse. I think that if parents keep comning up with medical certificates for their children not to attend school, the doctor should be investigated.
good luck mr spiteri
Charles Sammut
Oct 30th 2008, 09:36
"Mr Spiteri said these social realities were affecting the pupils as well as the teachers who suffered daily stress and a fear of being beaten up."
Would this be what trendy, progressive sociologists term "student empowerment"?
This is sickening and the solution is not in adaping the curriculum to suit what are out of line students, but to coax the students to fall in line with what is considered the national norm.
When discipline is considered as an infringement on students' human rights, then anarchy and ignorance would have triumphed.