Extending the school year- an option under study

Extending the school calendar is one of the options being evaluated by teachers’ unions and the Ministry of Education (Meduca) to recover the classes lost due to the teachers’ strike, amid protests from different organizations over the high cost of living and the corruption.

The Minister of Education, Maruja Gorday de Villalobos, confirmed that one of the proposals to make up

“An adjustment must be made in the school year, I know that there is a proposal from the teaching leadership for the recovery of the days, as has happened at other times,” said Gorday de Villalobos.

Diógenes Sánchez, leader of the Panama Teachers Association (Asoprof), said that when this type of situation occurs, the Ministry of Education presents an agreement to end the strike to the teachers’ leadership.

The agreement is based on several basic points: the date of resumption of classes, the fact that there will be no retaliation for participating in this action, academic recovery (which may be in terms of time or content), and compliance with the agreed agreements.

In this case, the Government must define the formula for how it will apply that 6% of the gross domestic product (GDP) to education – which educators have been requesting – and which is established by law, said Sánchez.

The leader anticipates that by Thursday afternoon, or at the latest Friday, the parties will meet and establish this agreement to end the strike.

For  Thursday, it is also planned that a subcommittee of the single dialogue table installed in Penonomé, , will address the issue of medicines.

At the same time, the meeting of the main table will continue, which will advance with the issue of 6% of GDP for education.

The Minister of Education said that about 30% of official schools, especially those with a low student population, continued to teach.