Opposition calls on government to explain budgetary cuts in education sector

Labour MP and shadow minister for education Evarist Bartolo has called on government to explain how the budgetary cuts announced last Friday are to affect the education sector, particularly the national curriculum.

"The people have the right to know how the austerity cuts will affect the sector," he said, adding that government will cut 0.21% of its budget related to programmes and initiatives.

Bartolo said the Labour Party had also handed in its feedback over the national curriculum framework, adding that the party had given the issue its appropriate attention focusing on the areas on all aspects of the framework, including its implementation.

"If elected, a Labour government would build on the good which exists and develop and revise the areas in which not enough - or adequate - consultation took place."

Bartolo said it was not enough to improve schools on a national level, but their standard should be compared on a European and international level: "We believe the necessary analysis to solve the current problems did not take place."

He reiterated that the curriculum cannot be a "one-size-fits-all" solution: "Just like the 1998 curriculum, this one was prepared top-down ignoring the different social realties which exist in the different schools."

Bartolo said the schools needed different syllabi to help the students with different social realties or problems not to fall back behind in their class: "This does not mean that one syllabus should be inferior than the other. But that different learning methods are used to accommodate students with different learning capabilities."

The former education minister added that "learning by doing" is not an inferior method of learning. "In life we learn through different ways. Why should children be taught in a uniform manner?" he said.

Bartolo criticised the fact that a strategy document has not yet been drawn up for the E-learning platform, while there was no link between the curriculum and the platform. He added that the financial implications of the curriculum have not been drawn up yet.

Bartolo reiterated his call for a strengthened multilingual teaching system: "Our students should be strong in both Maltese and English equally. Lack of fluency in either one of the languages results in students falling behind both educationally and in life."

He said one expected government to tackle the SEC syllabus holistically with the reform. Bartolo said government focused on the changes in the transition from primary to secondary but left out the transition from secondary to post-secondary and tertiary levels.

Bartolo noted that while Malta had a high level of children aged over 3 who attended Kindergarten, the country lagged behind in early childhood learning. He also called for cooperation between the education and health sector so that children with learning difficulties can be helped at an early stage.