Teachers’ shortage and engagement of foreigners to be probed by Education Commissioner

‘While it’s not nice to be in a situation where foreign teachers are needed, I’d rather have that then a situation where we have no teachers at all’ – Charles Caruana Carabez

Education Commissioner Charles Caruana Carabez
Education Commissioner Charles Caruana Carabez

A shortage of teachers and the possible recruitment of foreigners to fill in the gaps have prompted the Education Commissioner to probe the matter.

Charles Caruana Carabez said the investigation was his own initiative in the wake of media reports that highlighted the issue of teacher shortages.

The Education Commissioner falls within the Office of the Ombudsman.

Caruana Carabez, a former educator himself, said the investigation will determine how many foreign teachers are going to be employed, and which gaps they will be plugging.

At a press conference to announce the investigation, Caruana Carabez said it was important to ask whether Malta will even attract foreigners with the current salaries offered to teachers. 

“While it’s not nice to be in a situation where foreign teachers are needed, I’d rather have that then a situation where we have no teachers at all,” he added.

Caruana Carabez said if the recruitment of foreign teachers does not work, the situation will reach crisis level.

“I don’t know who’s to blame because it's difficult to say. Is it the University, and their curriculum? Is it the government and bad working conditions? Or is it the subjects that are being offered? While, I can’t say which, I can say it must have been a lack of foresight.”

Caruana Carabez said the priority at this stage was making sure students received their lessons.

“Learning is like building a wall, and every single day when a student or teacher does not attend there is one less brick in that wall. Without teachers, the walls will crumble at the first opportunity, we cannot continue with these shortfalls,” he added.

The Education Commissioner said the government should also be looking into re-employing retired teachers. “Why throw that expertise away?”

Caruana Carabez stressed that teachers had a massive undertaking and conditions should be re-evaluated. “You cannot work if the conditions aren’t right. The government needs to create a strategy that attracts the best minds to the profession.”

He questioned whether the shortages also stemmed from the “monumental stress” of trying to cover an entire syllabus, which “makes no sense”.

He said teachers needed to be focused on motivating students to learn. “Students need to understand why a subject is important and how it will serve them in the future and affect their lives.”

Giving a voice to the voiceless

Caruana Carabez said he was also looking into the fact that his office had not received one complaint about bullying from refugee children.

“I don’t believe it’s not happening because I know it is. I will be visiting these people and having conversations with them because some might not even realise there are mechanisms in place to protect them.”

He stressed that these children were the “poorest of the poor,” and had no voice. “I have already taken this issue to the archbishop and the minister, because they have no voice, and we need to better understand the problems these refugee children face."