“Lebanon Debate”
It seems that matters are likely to escalate further between the Minister of Education and the teachers’ associations at the level of general or vocational and technical education, after the Minister’s insistence on a scorer for grades to take the benefit that the associations demand to be given to everyone, in addition to retracting the exemption of TS and LT students from the testimonials and requiring them to take official exams, in a process of confusion that the Ministry of Education has not witnessed during any of the eras of the previous ministers.
The head of the Official Vocational and Technical Education Association, Farouk Al-Haraka, confirmed that the association is organizing a sit-in at eleven o’clock before noon tomorrow in front of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, in protest against the Council of Ministers’ decision regarding holding official exams, and in rejection of the way in which the educational file was dealt with under the current circumstances.
He explained that the sit-in comes in protest against what he described as “disregarding the fate of students, their certificates, and the vocational and technical education sector,” stressing that the association’s decision is clear and is to boycott all work related to official exams, including preparing questions, monitoring, correcting, and all other procedures related to them.
He pointed out that the association had called from the beginning to be patient in setting exam dates, based on its concern for the value of the official certificate, stressing that it is not against holding exams, but rather adheres to them, but within appropriate security and psychological conditions for students.
He said that the students are essentially suffering from great pressure, and they should not be burdened with additional anxiety or jeopardize their future due to any mistake or accident that may occur.
The movement considered that managing an educational file of this size and at this delicate stage cannot be done so simply, pointing out that the Council of Ministers was supposed to study the decision and discuss it in depth before approving it, not to issue it in a way that he described as “stubborn and malicious,” stressing that the Association was and still is in favor of holding exams, but at the appropriate timing and circumstances.
In response to a question about the possibility of holding exams without professors, he said that the association will confront any step of this kind with corresponding escalatory steps, in defense of the rights of professors, the sector, students, and official certificates, explaining that professors are the ones responsible for preparing questions, monitoring, and correcting, and therefore their boycott will directly affect the conduct of exams.
He also called on students to receive their nomination cards, but at the same time he appealed to them to boycott the exams and show solidarity with the professors’ movement, considering that students’ participation in the boycott is an essential element in the success of the movement.
He stressed that no one can provide any security guarantees for the safety of students and professors, citing a number of incidents and raids that claimed the lives of civilians and military personnel despite their taking various protective measures. He said that this reality is what prompted the association from the beginning to call for patience, but what he described as “stubbornness in dealing” forced it to take more stringent positions.
He concluded the movement by calling on all members of the educational staff in the formal sector, including owners and contractors, in addition to students, parents, and all those affected by this decision, to participate in the scheduled sit-in in front of the Ministry of Education, stressing that the movement is open to everyone who rejects the continuation of this approach in managing the educational file.
