Union calls for new schools to be built

TEN new schools should be built and more teachers recruited due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Cyprus Turkish Teachers’ Union (Ktös) has called for.

In a written statement issued on Sunday, Ktös claimed that none of the problems they had previously highlighted had been resolved, following a series of visits to schools in October.

“The low budget for state education, the insufficient investment in schools, the uncertainty with regards to the population [of the TRNC] and the lack of a sustainable education plan have led to problems occuring during the pandemic period and these problems are continuing,” the Ktös statement said.

“None of the decisions taken before the [presidential] elections regarding distance learning were realised.

“As there was no [installation of] fibre optic cables, the needs of the students, such as tablet computers and internet access, were met by civil society.

“We will continue to fight to create a political understanding which prioritises building schools, hospitals and roads instead of building mosques; which employs people in areas of need, rather than employing people in a partisan manner; and which works for the peace and tranquillity of Turkish Cypriots instead of Turkey’s benefit.”

Ktös said that social distancing requirements meant that extra schools and teachers needed to be recruited in order to provide full-time education. At present schoolchildren are attending classes on a rotational basis to ensure that there are no more than 20 children in a classroom at any one time.

“In order to provide [full-time education], 10 new schools should be built, additional classrooms should be built in some schools, single desks should be placed in classrooms and a school/student quota should be applied,” the Ktös statement added.

Ktös also said that hygiene supplies provided by the Education Ministry have already been used up and that teachers are only able to teach parts of the syllabus due to the reduced lesson time for pupils.