Malta on track for 2020 reduction of early school-leavers to 29%

Education Minister Dolores Cristina said Malta is gradually progressing to reduce the rate of its early school-leavers to 29% by 2020, after the European Commission yesterday said Malta risked missing its self-imposed thresholds.

At 36.9%, Malta had the highest number of early school leavers in the EU in 2010, even though it managed to cut the rate by two percentage points from 2005. The EU average stood at 14.1%.

The EU's own benchmark for 2010 is 10%, while Malta's benchmark is 29%.

"Feet on the ground, we have advanced with a decline in early school-leavers and we hope to further reduce them to the 29% benchmark by 2020," Cristina said.

The minister said such figures showed results manifested themselves over a long period of time. "In 2000, this government opened the MCAST to see the number of early school-leavers decreasing, and it's from this year onwards that we saw more school-leavers going on to study in tertiary education."

Earlier in the day, shadow education minister remarked that Malta still suffered in literacy rates, with a relatively large proportion of 'poor' and 'very poor' readers. "It is not enough to invest financially in education... Malta's problems are not being addressed. A third of our students are not being prepared for life with this system."

Bartolo said the new curriculum framework should addresse the gender gap in the education system, which is seeing areas of study such as teaching being feminised and keeping back male graduates.

On her part, Dolores Cristina critised the Opposition's stand not to support the upcoming  Education Bill in parliament.

"We want to see this growth [in people continuing their education] increasing, but it needs to be catered for with new and better facilities. MCAST has a new campus being developed, and the same is planned for the University of Malta, the Institute of Tourism Studies, the Junior College, and the Higher Secondary.

"Our track record in investing in education speaks clearly. While other countries are cutting back on education, we have kept the momentum going because it ultimately reflects on employment, the economy and our social services," Cristina said.

Bartolo has defended Labour's intention to vote against the Education Bill, which is a money bill, as "normal parliamentary practice" even though the Opposition agrees with the law's objectives.

Cristina today said that Labour's opposition comes even after Labour MP and spokesman for higher education Owen Bonnici said in parliament that the Opposition would support the Bill.

The EU's latest figures shows that by 2010, Malta only managed to reduce the number of 30-34-year-olds who have no tertiary education to 21.5%, against 33.6% in the EU.

The EU is targeting the 40% mark by 2020 while Malta is targeting 33%. Malta had been allowed to aim for lower targets than the EU average because it started from a more challenging place when compared to most EU member states.

Another point raised by Bartolo was how government inflated 73% figures of 17-year-olds attending post-secondary education by including those who attended short-term courses or courses organised by other entities such as ETC. Bartolo said the figure ignored the number of students who dropped out at this level.

However, Minister Cristina rebutted the argument saying that the figures included only full-time students. She added that the statistics are worked out during March, when most students would have settled in and those who would have decided to drop out, would already have.

During his press conference, Bartolo said that there were plans for a pilot project at Sta Clara College to become a mixed gender school, even though female academics argue against the option, as it would place female students behind.

Surprised at Bartolo's comment, Cristina said the issue had been barely touched upon: "It surely will not happen in the coming four or five years. The idea was suggested because of the dropping populations at the secondary schools, while the boys' schools do not have adequate sport facilities.

"We thought that maybe the two schools could be merged for certain use of facilities. But this issue of co-ed is so controversial that at the present moment it's not to be reconsidered."

Another criticism made by Bartolo was over ITS's lack of teachers for 25 subjects. Again, Cristina denied Bartolo's comments, stating that ITS had insisted that this was not the case.

"As stated by the school itself, the second semester for the ITS's academic year has not started yet. Interviews for recruitment of teachers are ongoing. It is normal procedure for the school to employ teachers on contract basis," Cristina said.