9/23/2014
HAVANA – The exodus of teachers from the classrooms is one of the problems facing Cuba’s educational system, with 6,938 educators quitting during the 2013-2014 academic year, according to government figures published Monday in the weekly Trabajadores.
The problem has been present for several years in the sector and “not only prevents total (educational) coverage but also affects the quality of the educational process,” said the publication, the official organ of the CTC, Cuba’s only authorized labor union.
Low pay, excessive bureaucracy, scanty social recognition and lack of family support are some of the reasons why teachers abandon the profession, according to the article.
The general secretary of the educational union, Ismael Drullet, said that the phenomenon creates a “very complex” situation because “it’s not the same in all regions, not does it have the same causes.”
“There are provinces that are more threatened than others and that is related to ... socioeconomic development. The teacher is a trained, disciplined professional and is always tempted to abandon the school (system) to perform other functions,” he said.
Regarding the problem of teacher retention, the principal of a school in Cienfuegos province, Maileny Quintana, said that educational coverage is not staying stable due to “the lack of responsibility and, perhaps, due to ... other sectors that offer better pay.”
“It musn’t be forgotten that at this time the economic situation is a determining factor,” she said, adding that “bureaucratization is among the factors that most negatively affects things. Another thing is the excessive paperwork, and the classroom planning, which on occasion is very rigorous.”
Cuba began the 2014-2015 school year on Sept. 1 with almost 2 million students attending 10,366 schools and about 172,000 teachers, 93.1 percent of the required payroll, leaving more than 10,800 positions unfilled, according to Education Ministry figures.
To make up the deficit of teachers, authorities have resorted to hiring retired teachers, school administrators and other personnel with qualifications in specific areas.
source
HAVANA – The exodus of teachers from the classrooms is one of the problems facing Cuba’s educational system, with 6,938 educators quitting during the 2013-2014 academic year, according to government figures published Monday in the weekly Trabajadores.The problem has been present for several years in the sector and “not only prevents total (educational) coverage but also affects the quality of the educational process,” said the publication, the official organ of the CTC, Cuba’s only authorized labor union.
Low pay, excessive bureaucracy, scanty social recognition and lack of family support are some of the reasons why teachers abandon the profession, according to the article.
The general secretary of the educational union, Ismael Drullet, said that the phenomenon creates a “very complex” situation because “it’s not the same in all regions, not does it have the same causes.”
“There are provinces that are more threatened than others and that is related to ... socioeconomic development. The teacher is a trained, disciplined professional and is always tempted to abandon the school (system) to perform other functions,” he said.
Regarding the problem of teacher retention, the principal of a school in Cienfuegos province, Maileny Quintana, said that educational coverage is not staying stable due to “the lack of responsibility and, perhaps, due to ... other sectors that offer better pay.”
“It musn’t be forgotten that at this time the economic situation is a determining factor,” she said, adding that “bureaucratization is among the factors that most negatively affects things. Another thing is the excessive paperwork, and the classroom planning, which on occasion is very rigorous.”
Cuba began the 2014-2015 school year on Sept. 1 with almost 2 million students attending 10,366 schools and about 172,000 teachers, 93.1 percent of the required payroll, leaving more than 10,800 positions unfilled, according to Education Ministry figures.
To make up the deficit of teachers, authorities have resorted to hiring retired teachers, school administrators and other personnel with qualifications in specific areas.
source
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