The Malta Union of Teachers today described as 'half baked' a governemnt decision requiring parents to produce medical certificates when their children do not go to school, even for a day.
"The Union agrees in principle with the idea of introducing measures that reduce the current levels of absenteeism. However the MUT notes – as it has stated many times in relation to other initiatives – that such sudden decisions will not solve the problem unless they are accompanied by a proper structure," the MUT said.
"As things stand, and without such a structure, situations will be created whereby children are sent to school even if they are unwell in order for the parents to avoid the additional costs and/or hassle of procuring a medical certificate. The Union is therefore suggesting that schools are provided with measures that will ensure that children who are sick are kept at home for the health and safety of other children. This may include on call doctors or nurses who can visit the school if any of the schoolchildren is suspected to be unwell for any reason."
It said the structure must also be accompanied by measures to safeguard schools against the minority of irresponsible parents who take their children to school when sick and then refuse to collect them, in some cases even refusing to answer phone calls.
In the past, it recalled, it had to intervene in cases where parents sent their children to school when it was evident that they were suffering from various serious conditions such as measles, chicken pox and even scarlet fever. With this standalone measure, such occurrences were bound to increase.
The announcement about the medical certificate requirement was made yesterday by Social Solidarity Minister Michael Farrugia.
Currently, children only have to present a medical certificate if they are ill for longer than three days in one month.
“The days where children were entitled to three days of ‘leave’ a month are over,” Dr Farrugia said, adding that the system meant a child could miss out on some 27 days of school.
He explained the government was aiming to clamp down on truancy, especially in State schools as these had an attendance rate of 87 per cent as opposed to the 96 per cent registered by church and private schools.
If children were repeatedly missing school and presenting a medical certificate, the government would be sending doctors to homes to verify if they were truly sick.