The fate of rural schools, employment issues. What else concerns teachers and parents?
Several calls were received from concerned teachers and parents of students at the Bobrovsky kindergarten-secondary school in the Lepel district. The district executive committee decided not to open the 10th grade at the educational institution this year, organizing transportation for children to the larger Borovskaya secondary school. Meanwhile, according to the callers, about 8 students are enrolled in the 10th grade, for whom it will be inconvenient to travel 10 kilometers, and teachers will also receive less teaching load.
Dmitry Leonidovich was aware of the situation.
– It is abnormal when, especially in small rural schools, the 10th grade is formed regardless of academic performance, – he noted. – Yes, this solves the issue of teachers' workload, but it is in no way related to the quality of education. Analysis shows that most graduates of the 11th grade of small schools do not even try to pass the Centralized Test, but enter vocational schools and lyceums, which could have been done two years earlier. According to our information, 4 students planned to enroll in the 10th grade of the Bobrovsky kindergarten-secondary school, and in 2017, this educational institution will become a base school. Therefore, the education department proposed that 10th graders enroll in the Borovskaya school starting this year. It is a modern standard school with full-fledged classes, a well-equipped physics room, and soon a chemistry room. Specialized training is organized for high school students. There are no problems with transportation. By the way, according to the resolution of the regional council of deputies, the decision to open 10th grades with fewer than five students is possible only in exceptional cases.
In general, the issue of the further fate of small rural schools is acute. Over the past few years, dozens of such educational institutions have been closed annually, and children are transported by buses to larger schools where better learning conditions are created. From September 1, 22 educational institutions will be closed and 30 will be reorganized in the region.
The main reasons are improving the efficiency of the education system and the rational use of funds. After all, the cost of educating one child in small schools is 2-3 times higher than the regional average, and there are issues with the quality of education and the availability of all educational resources. It is assumed that optimization will save about 25 billion budget funds this year (in pre-denomination prices), and 75 billion next year.
The applicants were also concerned about employment issues. For example, a correspondence student Natalya, a future physical education teacher, called the "hotline" and asked if she could already work at a school. Natalya was explained that she could work at a school only after completing the 4th-5th year. There was an appeal from a woman who had already been offered a job as a caregiver in one of the vocational schools in the regional center, but she delayed starting her new job for a week and... lost the position. There is nothing that can be done here.
"All young pedagogical specialists received job assignments this year," emphasized Dmitry Khoma. "There are few vacancies today, especially in cities. Educational institutions are fully staffed, including kindergartens. You have to hold onto your job now."
Important
According to preliminary information from the education department of the regional executive committee, more than 60% of the educational institutions of the Vitebsk region have passed the commission acceptance for the new academic year and have obtained readiness passports. By the way, there are currently 1,066 educational institutions in the region, 423 of which are schools and gymnasiums. The head of the technical supervision department of the education department, Natalya Vasilevich, reported that in some districts, the acceptance of schools began in July and is now being completed. The commission includes representatives of all interested departments: from the sanitary service to the deputy corps. Special attention is traditionally paid to the condition of food blocks (technological equipment, availability of quality dishes, etc.), roofs, sports facilities and halls, fire safety, and much more. According to Natalya Vasilevich, in general, the management of the institutions approached the matter responsibly, and the inspectors have no major complaints.
Alexander Kutynko, "Vitebskiye Vesti".