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Various education and school issues in Poland. Opinions, stories, controversies. [1006]
Dear guys, so far I have been having fun in the PF but now the matter is extremely important. I am going to be dead serious and talk about education in Poland, and you probably know the Polish saying:
As you educate the youth today, such Polands will be in future.According to all indications, teachers` strike is going to take place in mid April. If the PiS government doesn` t fulfill the demands formulated by the two main trade unions, the protest might affect the final exams in elementary and junior high schools.
The trade unions` main demand is more money for teachers - additional 1000 PLN, about 300$, monthly. On average, novice teachers get less than novice policemen or soldiers, also it is suggested that cashiers in chain stores earn more. How do teachers justify their demands? The main reason, apart from low pay, is that the job is becoming more and more stressful, not only in result of decreasing discipline and students` low devotion to books, but also due to the controvercial reform which abolished junior high schools 3 years ago. That is why, this year two seperate grades are going to compete for places in high schools - 15- year -olds from reformed elementary schools and 16 -year-olds from old closed down junior high schools. It means twice as many as previously. High schools - lyceums, vocational schools and technical colleges are not made of rubber, how are they going to accommodate so many students? Even worse, experts predict that many students will be turned down by the schools they want to attend and will have to go to ones with free places, even vocational ones.
Additionally, the reform has caused incredible chaos in teachers` daily work because new curriculums are very tight and teachers are not able to fulfill the expectations of the Education Ministry. To be on time, they assign students giant amounts of homework which always causes giant frustration not only in students but also their parents who, in Polish case, often help their kids with schoolwork. Why the inability to fulfill expectations? The primary reason is that the material from previous 3- year junior high school was comprised into 2 last years of elementary school. Can you believe it? One year less than before. How crazy or stupid might one be to have concocted such absurdity?
Teachers have had enough and they are voting with their feet, quitting schools and looking for better paid positions, in banking, offices or corporations. There are fewer and fewer undergraduates who are willing to work in schools. E..g, I haven`t had a trainee teacher for about 3 years now, while in previous years there had been 2 a year on average. This means hardly anybody is interested in becoming a teacher. When the old teachers die out, who is going to work in schools? Cyborgs? Some subjects, like Polish class, should be taught by humans who feel all the intricacies in the attitudes of Kordian, Gustaw, Zbyszko and other characters from Polish literature. Even immigrants are reluctant to become teachers in Poland, I remember working with two female teachers of English, one Russian and another Ukrainian, but that was about 15-10 years ago.
Naturally, many people are critical of the strike. They claim that teachers have always complained about salaries and are insatiable. They officially do 18 classes a week to have a full time post (the least of all European countries). What is more, they enjoy not only 2 full months of summer holidays but schools also break up for Christmas, Easter and winter holidays. Additionally, teachers get various bonuses and benefits, e.g., 13th salary (whoopie, it always comes in March) Finally, if they don`t like their job, they can always change it and become chain store workers where allegedly they will earn more.
On Wednesday a referendum whether to take strike action is going to be held in our school. I still don`t know how I will vote. On the one hand, I will happily show PiS what I think of their moronic reforms. Besides, those bastards are giving away benefits like crazy, so why shouldn`t teachers take advantage of them, too?
On the other hand, strike might affect students taking exams. Also, I will lose a few hundred $ if the strike continues for a week or longer (nearly double full time in a state school, 34 classes per week). Eventually, our head teacher has had issues with the local council, they would like to have him dismissed and they might arrange it if the strike takes place, accusing him of losing control.
