[WATCH] Study to take x-ray of education profession

A new study is expected to identify the problems educators face in the classroom, in what is being billed as an x-ray of the teaching profession.

The study, a collaboration between the Malta Union of Teachers and the Education Ministry, will highlight the challenges faced by those working in the education sector.

Education Minister Evarist Bartolo said the classroom dynamic has changed, which means those in charge have to be able to identify the new problems. 

“The classroom has changed, the parents have changed and the students have changed, and so we must find solutions to these new problems,” Bartolo said. 

He added that while those still in the profession will be consulted, those who have resigned from teaching will also be spoken to.

“We want to understand what led them to pursue the decision to resign… We want to improve the situation for everyone,” Bartolo said. 

Spearheaded by professor Mark Borg, the study will engage with everyone involved in teaching, with the aim of understanding individual and collective issues.

“The issues a teacher faces in one school are not necessarily faced by a teacher in another school,” Borg said.

MUT President Marco Bonnici said the study will provide an x-ray into the profession and its problems. The new challenges must be approached in a collective manner, he added.

Bonnici said that entrusting the study to Prof. Borg prevented both the union and the ministry from getting caught up in the nitty gritty of how to go about the study. 

“Through consensus, we will now be able to rollout both short and long-term measures towards improving the profession,” he said. 

The study is expected to be completed by the 1 April next year, but all parties agreed that if sufficient data is available, measures can start being implemented before the study’s completion date.