A number of measures to combat truancy should be included in the upcoming revision of the Education Act, according to the head of the Cospicua primary school.
Addressing a press conference yesterday, school head Marion Falzon Ghio called on the Education Ministry to consider the setting up of a network between teaching professionals, GPs and education authorities.
This, she said, could provide new measures to help stop abuse by parents of truant children.
“We need to unite. It’s pointless me fighting against absenteeism if doctors are giving out certificates even when not needed, or when parents are ignoring fines from the authorities. This all needs to stop,” she said.
We need to unite. It’s pointless me fighting against absenteeism if doctors are giving out certificates even when not needed
Student truancy was thrust into the national spotlight after Ms Falzon Ghio vented her frustration during a public consultation with Education Minister Evarist Bartolo on Tuesday.
She had said that schools were plagued by absenteeism, students with poor hygiene and non-compliant parents.
Speaking in the school’s administration office, Ms Falzon Ghio rejected a suggestion by the Malta Union of Teachers that children’s allowance be withheld for parents who fail to provide children with basic necessities.
“This is not the solution. A better way around controlling the social benefit would be to give out vouchers which could only be spent on certain necessities for the children,” she said.
A teary-eyed Ms Falzon Ghio said she had encountered several instances of children whose basic rights to health, food and hygiene were being neglected.
“I know of schools all over Malta who have had to provide meals to children who are not given lunch. I have worked in other schools and seen children in very poor shape, with no uniforms and not enough books,” she said, insisting that this problem was not unique to Cospicua, but was affecting schools across the whole island.
It would appear as though Ms Falzon Ghio’s outburst may have ruffled some feathers among the Cospicua community, as she told reporters that many may have felt she was labelling the locality.
“I just want to say how much I respect the people of Cospicua. I know how much they respect me too, even though not everyone understood me when I spoke up. I was speaking in their best interest and wanted to give a voice to those children who are not being taken care of all over the island,” she said.
Many cases, she added, were due to a lack of parental skills. She had met students who were effectively caring for their parents, while other students were being given no discipline.
“We have to realise these are the parents of the future,” she said.
Asked what direct action the school could take to combat truancy, Ms Falzon Ghio said all she could do was report incidents to the authorities.
A spokeswoman from the Education Directorate said that around one per cent of primary school students were regular-ly truant.
“We act on every report we receive. We assign social workers and work with school guidance counsellors to understand the students’ situation,” she said.
A spokesman for the Education Ministry said: “The consultation phase of the education act is currently ongoing and the ministry is taking on board all feedback being raised.”
He said the minister shared Ms Falzon Ghio’s concerns and the Education Act amendments would be the right framework to address shortcomings in the sector.
“The challenges being faced by schools are not simply an educational matter; schools need the full support of the authorities, parents, professionals and society in order to deliver,” he said.