The school in distress

Anyone who wants to look behind the façade of the school system …

should read this report by two South Tyrolean teachers. Exactly the same picture can be seen in Germany and Austria:

Two teachers have spoken anonymously about the unbearable conditions at some schools in South Tyrol

They report on a number of recent incidents, such as a boy at a middle school in Merano who was threatened with a knife by a classmate, or a boy who was beaten up by classmates on the bus a few days later. Those make the news, but there is a whole series of incidents that never reach the public: girls who are sexually abused or left to fend for themselves, boys with suicidal thoughts. And other extremely difficult situations.

In view of this problematic situation – suffice it to say that at the beginning of May more than a thousand teachers signed the petition “Schule in Not (German)” (School in distress) – two teachers who could not speak officially chose the route of an anonymous interview to bring the issue into the open.

“When I think of my training,” said one of the two, a middle school teacher, “I have to say that everyday school life has nothing to do with what I learned during my five years of training. I am busy with things that have nothing to do with what I learned.”

The school authority has raised the criteria for allocating staff for inclusion, the teacher notes. “Sometimes I have to concentrate on one pupil in a problematic situation.”

Too many children need help. Help is not requested by the school or is poorly organised. It takes months to get psychologists or social workers.

His colleague would like working groups in which the teachers concerned take part, not the head teachers: “The school authority has to stop sitting at a table on its own. And it is useless if only head teachers are invited who do not know everyday life in the classroom. The school authority must listen to the people who work with the children every day.”

The two teachers call for more support for schools in difficulty and stress that the quality of the system cannot be measured by schools where there are no children and young people with serious problems. On the contrary, it is precisely the problem areas that should serve as an indicator of the state of affairs. That is exactly where psychologists, speech therapists, language teachers and educators are constantly needed. If action is not taken in time, one of the two interviewees stresses, there is a danger that experienced teachers will turn their backs on the problem schools.

Read more (German)

Sozialunion WIR-NOI (German)