National education debate to kick off in Warsaw
PR dla Zagranicy
Grzegorz Siwicki
26.04.2019 08:00
Some 80 teachers, parents, officials and experts were on Friday set to start a debate on the state of Polish education at a high-profile event in the country’s capital.
A rally in support of protesting teachers in the northwestern Polish city of Szczecin this week. A banner reads "Education, Dignity, Future." Photo: PAP/Marcin Bielecki
The debate was due to kick off at noon in a conference hall at the National Stadium in Warsaw in response to an initiative by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.
Morawiecki last week invited teachers, parents, unionists, politicians, local government authorities and experts to take part in “roundtable talks" about the future of Polish education amid a nationwide strike by school teachers over pay.
Unionists have since announced a suspension of the protest.
Morawiecki said last week he wanted the Warsaw debate to focus on four key topics: students, teachers, the quality of education, and modern schooling.
The Polish prime minister added that issues at the centre of the teachers’ pay strike could only be resolved through an in-depth analysis of the state of education in the country.
Thousands of schools across Poland cancelled classes after teachers on April 8 went on a nationwide strike of unlimited duration to demand hefty pay raises.
The protest began just before end-of-school exams at various levels of education.
Meanwhile, Poland's parliament has backed new rules designed to allow students to take high school final exams despite the teachers’ strike.
Lawmakers in the early hours of Friday rejected a bid by the opposition to oust Education Minister Anna Zalewska.
(gs/pk)
Source: IAR