Political parties should consider whether it was time to abolish the use of uniforms in schools to offer students a more homely education.
In its pre-election document, the Malta Union of Teachers asked political parties whether it was time to look at Malta’s school uniform policy and see what was happening in other European countries, such as the UK, where some schools had a uniform policy and others did not.
MUT president Kevin Bonello said the union was also calling for proper legislation on cyber bullying and bullying at the place of work to protect not only the students but also the educators.
The MUT called for a unit within the education ministry to support victims of this abuse.
In another proposal, MUT said that parents should be given proper parental training in view of the fact that more than 50 per cent of student education and formation was given outside school hours.
One of its proposals was for this parental skills training to be linked to children’s allowance or any other social benefits.
“Even parents need continuous professional development. They need to be given the tools to put their children at the centre of their lives and their investments.”
The union called for the setting up a parents’ association that would be able to support other parents in need.
Referring to educational reforms, Mr Bonello said teachers were suffering from “reform fatigue” and were finding it difficult to cope with all the different reforms being put in place in such a short span of time.
The union appealed for educators to be given time to get used to new ways of doing things before further new systems were introduced.
It complained that teachers were at a disadvantage in public opinion because in the past years public statements undermined their integrity and professionalism.
The union said that the government should embark on a national campaign to improve the way people looked at teachers. It should also embark on a campaign to see what could be done to attract more men to the profession.
In other proposals, the union requested bigger and more spacious staff rooms with all the equipment that teachers needed to carry out their jobs professionally.
On Gozo, the union said it still could not understand how schools in Gozo fell under the responsibility of the Gozo Ministry rather than the Education Ministry.
It said the government should address the situation in certain Gozo schools where there were only two, three or four students in one classroom, saying this was not “educationally sane”.
On the other hand, the government should also address overcrowding in Maltese schools where one could still find 26 to 28 students in one classroom. “Children should be given more individual attention,” Mr Bonello said.
Referring to a second university proposal that had been floated by the Labour Party, Mr Bonello said the MUT was not against the setting up of a second university although it felt the University of Malta should be better supported first
It also called for more investment in MCAST, which should not be considered as a direct competitor of the university.