Representatives of women’s organisations, employers, trade unions and teachers agree that after-school services should be introduced to enhance children’s creative and social skills while allowing parents to work.
Renee Laiviera, who heads the Malta Confederation of Women’s Organisations, said such activities should be based on non-academic subjects like crafts, drama, sports, art and music.
Time after school can also be spent assisting children with their homework as this will mean students who do not have help at home can get the attention they need.
Dr Laiviera said such services should be voluntary for teachers and students, should be backed by the necessary resources and offered throughout Malta and Gozo. They should be part of a holistic plan to encourage women to remain in the labour market.
She was speaking during a half-day conference organised by the confederation to kick-start a national discussion on the introduction of after-school activities.
During the conference, parents expressed concern about excess homework that was not allowing their children to “know how to play anymore”. Teachers said they had pressure from some parents to give homework.
Various employer and union representatives present backed the introduction of after-school services saying this should be put on the national agenda.
The president of the Malta Union of Teachers, John Bencini noted that, according to the 2010 collective agreement, children in primary schools had 27.5 hours a week of formal learning, which increased to 29 in secondary schools.
The union was not against having after-school activities but did not intend to extend the hours of formal learning, most of which were spent seated in class.
He suggested drawing up a memorandum of understanding and meeting with the responsible authorities to find a solution. He also suggested setting up a pilot project in one school within each of the 10 colleges.
The director general of the Malta Employers’ Association, Joe Farrugia said women had to be encouraged to be present at work. “Although I believe schools should not offer baby sitting services, after-school activities will help form children’s character, they will learn other non-academic skills and give them more time to socialise,” he said.
Malta Business Bureau chief executive Joe Tanti agreed this would lead to a “total winning” on both a social and economic level.
Union Ħaddiema Magħqudin president Gaetano Tanti and the chief executive of the Foundation for Human Resources Management, Joe Gerada said after-school activities would give children a variety of talents and experiences that would help them in future.
Agreeing with this, Michael Parnis, from the General Workers’ Union, said the union backed any initiative that helped women work by filling the gap between 2 and 5 p.m. He suggested involving local councils in finding a solution.
As things stand, the Foundation for Educational Services operates three after-school centres in Birkirkara, Fgura and Mosta. Another one in Naxxar was closed down for lack of demand. Some private and Church schools also offer some activities.
A mother’s experience
Schoolchildren, aged three to 16, have up to 80 full days off a year and 28 half-days while parents have 24 days leave each if they work full-time, according to the calculations of Annick Cassar.
The mother of three, who is also a sixth form lecturer, is on her fifth year career break to raise her children aged between two and nine years.
“In these five years, I learnt a lot from my children and the parents of their friends about the problems they face. Just last week my son had two days off school due to a parents’ day and the mother of his friend almost went crazy as she did not know what to do with her son. I offered to look after him but next year will be difficult as I plan to return to work,” she said.
Problems are accentuated if siblings do not attend the same school. “I’ve heard of a parent who goes to work when sick so she can take sick leave when her children are ill,” Ms Cassar said.
Other daily challenges include the late opening times of some schools; 8.30 a.m. is too late for many working parents. Most Church schools finish by 1.30 p.m. which is too early. Then, there is homework, sometimes excessive, to deal with and the array of activities like catechism and private lessons that require a lot of driving around.
A grandmother’s view
Like many grandparents in Malta, Lydia Sciberras is helping her two working daughters raise their four children aged between one month and five years.
The children are juggled between their parents and various grandparents who all pitch in to offer support.
“Sometimes these poor children remind me of ping pong balls bouncing between me, their other nanna and their parents. This creates a problem with school transport as the children move around,” the retired teacher said.
When it is her “shift” to pick up the children from school, some finish at midday so she lingers around till 1.30 p.m. waiting to collect the other. After that it is straight home to start the homework that sometimes included sums, English reading and dictation as well as Maltese reading and dictation all on one day.
“I have spoken to teachers about the excessive homework and they said some parents ask for it,” she said. She added that, as a teacher, she knew children had a short concentration span but this was being ignored by overloading children with work.
Sometimes, homework had to be interrupted for children to go to catechism lessons. She was recently “shocked” when her grandchild was sick for a week and the teacher sent a note with a list of items under the heading “she has to know these”.
“I am enjoying spending time with my grandchildren but when they leave, I’ll be exhausted,” she admitted.