Education Ministry: Draxler Carefully Considers Schools' Requirements

Education Ministry: Draxler Carefully Considers Schools' Requirements

Bratislava, February 1 (TASR) – Education, Science, Research and Sport Minister Juraj Draxler is carefully taking the requirements of the education sector into consideration, according to ministry spokesperson Beata Dupalova Ksenzsighova on Monday.

She was speaking in response to an evaluation of the incumbent Cabinet’s activities by the Slovak Teachers Initiative (ISU), which has been on strike over the past week. At a press briefing earlier in the day, ISU’s Branislav Kocur claimed that the incumbent Cabinet has failed to meet many features from its 2012-16 Manifesto.

Referring to the Manifesto, ISU says Government has failed to improve the standing of teachers in society or their financial remuneration and failed to prepare future teachers, for instance. The Government was also criticised for failing to reduce bureaucracy and the administrative burden in education, to carry out a thorough revision of education reform or come up with a new system of governing and managing education vis-a-vis the regional governments.

According to Dupalova Ksenzsighova, Draxler welcomes the increased activity of teachers’ unions and professional organisations that attended a coordination meeting on Thursday (January 28) focused on formulating the requirements of the education sector before next month’s general election.

Dupalova Ksenzsighova added that meeting was attended by Draxler and also Slovak Teachers Initiative representative Vladimir Crmoman. Draxler is to meet with the ISU representatives tomorrow as well at the Parliamentary Education, Science, Youth and Sport Committee.