Teacher Shortage threatens Closure of Schools- CTU
View(s):The Ceylon Teachers Union (CTU) last week said that several schools are on the brink of closure due to the lack of teachers in those schools.
CTU General Secretary Joseph Stalin said that the Government’s policy of posting teachers according to the population strength of schools and not according to the subjects, has resulted in around 874 schools having less than 5 teachers.
According to the Census & Statistics 2017 of the Education Ministry, 54 schools have 1 teacher, 97 schools have 2 teachers, and 723 schools have 3-5 teachers.
This has resulted in parents losing confidence in the teaching imparted in these schools, as fewer than 3 teachers teach all subjects in the school.
Countrywide, 9 % of schools have less than 5 teachers, while around 9.5% of schools have more than 50 teachers. However, 25% of schools have 21-50 teachers.
The total number of schools in the country stands at 10,194, with 4.2 million students and 241,590 teachers. – CC