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300 trained teacher assistants in CP denied permanency, unions claim

03 Mar 2022

  • CTU/CTSU give one-week’s ultimatum to Education Ministry before protest on 9 March 
BY Buddhika Samaraweera  The Ceylon Teachers’ Union (CTU) and the Ceylon Teachers’ Service Union (CTSU) have alleged that the Education Ministry has not taken steps to include more than 300 trained teacher assistants who are currently working in schools in the Central Province (CP) to be made permanent teachers in the service and also in a programme to establish a group of graduates working as Development Officers in the teaching service. Speaking to The Morning, CTU President Priyantha Fernando said that out of the 1,100 recruited in 2014 as teacher assistants for schools in the CP, 306 have not yet been made permanent teachers. He said that they have now completed the training they should receive as a teacher.  “These teacher assistants have been working in schools for more than eight years now. However, they have not been included in the programme to establish graduates in the teaching service. The authorities, on a number of occasions, pledged that they would be appointed as teachers, but now it is not happening,” he said.  Fernando further said that these teacher assistants with more than eight years of experience should also be included in the permanent teaching service. Accordingly, if the Education Ministry does not state its position regarding them within this week, a large-scale protest is planned to be held in front of the Central Provincial Governor's office on 9 March with the participation of the relevant teacher assistants and teachers, he said. He added: “These teacher assistants worked until 2018 for a monthly allowance of about Rs. 5,000, which was increased to Rs. 10,000 in 2018, but in the current economic climate, that amount is not even enough for them to travel to schools.” Claiming that the recruitments for the teaching service have not been made after 2018, Fernando recently said that there was a shortage of about 48,000 teachers by 31 December 2021 which could increase to 60,000 by the end of this year. He said that the shortage of teachers has had a major impact in the North Central, Eastern and Uva Provinces and in the estate based schools in the Central and Sabaragamuwa Provinces.  Meanwhile, the CTSU had, in a letter to Education Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, requested that the said teacher assistants also be included in the programme to appoint Development Officers as teachers.  Education Ministry Secretary, Prof. Kapila Perera was not available for comment.

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