With a budget of €1.7 billion. overall in regular and development expenditures, the Ministry of Education declares itself ready for the challenges of the new school year. A series of policies, actions and decisions that will be implemented immediately in the education system, were presented yesterday by the Minister of Education, Athena Michailidou, to the parliamentary committee on Education.
Among the most important points raised by the Minister are:
1. Increase in school escorts for children with disabilities and learning difficulties.
2. Actions at all educational levels, which, among others, concern, the Curricula, the Digital School, the All-Day Schools, further extension of the free compulsory Pre-Primary Education to 4 years and 4 months.
3. Remedial teaching of the Greek Language – Strategy for upgrading its teaching.
4. Infrastructure and prefabricated classrooms – Installation of air conditioners.
5. Staffing.
6. Security of school units with the installation of cameras.
7. Institutionalization and upgrading of Music and Sports Schools.
8. Upgrading of Technical Education and expansion of the institution of the Technical Gymnasium.
The Special Education Bill is coming
Regarding the much-discussed issue of Special Education and the efforts made to modernize the legislation as well as the policies for inclusive schooling, Ms. Michailidou said that in September the bill will be submitted to the Council of Ministers and then it will be put before the Parliament. The competent Minister was criticized on this issue, as delays were observed regarding the timetables that have long been announced for this bill.
In the chapter on Special Education, Ms. Michailidou informed the Committee about the numbers of school escorts, saying that in recent years they have doubled. Specifically, in the Minister's presentation, it is stated that for the new school year that begins soon, in Primary Education the number of escorts has increased by 208.
Specifically, based on the data presented, the ratio is:School year 2024 – 2025: 2,623 children and 1,154 school escorts/assistants.School year 2025 – 2026: 2,719 children and 1,407 chaperones.School year 2026 – 2027: 2,900 children and 1,615 chaperones.
Expenditure on Special Education also appears to have increased. In 2027, an allocation of €27,384 million has been calculated. compared to €21,582 million. of 2026.
Reduction of vandalism in schools that have cameras
The Ministry of Education finds a noticeable decrease in vandalism, which occurred in previous years, mainly in specific schools in various areas. This seems to be due to the installation of closed monitoring systems in the above schools, a measure decided to prevent the destruction and damage, which occurred mainly in the afternoon and evening hours.
As the Minister mentioned, in the school units in which cameras have been installed, there was a noticeable decrease in delinquent behaviors, which were mainly manifested in destruction of school premises and vandalism. At the same time, Athena Michailidou informed that the process of installing the cameras in other schools is proceeding normally, on the basis of the existing planning and on the basis of data collected by the Police.
At the same time, actions to deal with and suppress such phenomena have to do not only with cameras but also with pedagogical policies implemented in schools. Among these policies that have been adopted are the competent committees in schools, the strengthening of the counselor as well as the placement of the first social workers, who from this year will be in specific schools, on the basis of a pilot program.
The painful history of air conditioners – Some went too low
Once again, the issue of air conditioners in schools was the subject of questions from MPs, with the Minister and other competent bodies answering. What was said is that specific and detailed data on the issue are expected on Friday, while it was pointed out that the installation plan is being followed. The problems that arise in the whole project mainly concern the electrical installations of schools. According to the president of the School Boards, Nikos Megalemos, in Secondary Education there are some problems that need to be solved, while the picture is clearly better and more complete in kindergartens, where air conditioners have been installed at about 70% – 80%.
It is worth noting that in the whole project of installing air conditioners there were also grotesque incidents. For example, in some cases where the air conditioners were placed at a very low point, as a result of which there is a risk of some people hitting them! In these cases, as is logical, they will come out and be repositioned.
Disagreements again over the evaluation
In the meantime, in the context of the debate on the start of the new school year, the disagreement of the educational organizations on the implementation of the formative assessment arose again. On the one hand, the educational organizations raised the issue of suspending this provision due to problems in implementation and preparation, on the other hand, Athena Michailidou appeared clear that it is legislation and will be implemented.
"For the evaluation, we are ready to start with what is required by law. Let's start with the formative evaluation. We support teachers without numerical evaluation, the legislation says, and we are ready to do this in consultation with educational organizations," he said.
School staffing: Smooth, but any gaps are expected
Regarding staffing, both the Minister and the chairman of the Educational Service Committee, Panagiotis Antoniou, informed the House that at the moment there is no pending issue. However, these days needs are expected that will arise mainly from non-acceptance of a position by teachers, with the aim of covering them until the start of classes.
On the part of educational organizations, there was also talk of other members of the school community who fall under the staffing, and are not teachers. In particular, POED, OELMEK and OLTEK raised the issue of serious shortages of secretarial staff in schools of all levels – with the problem being even more acute in kindergartens, which have a secretary for only three hours a week, which they "borrow" from Primary Schools – as well as in cleaning staff in some cases. The reference of the president of OLTEK that Technical Schools do not have a storekeeper was also characteristic, with the directors performing these duties as well.
Technical High School: Reduced interest
Despite the fact that the institution of the Technical High School has been viewed very positively by the authorities, the participation numbers of children are low. The Committee referred to a specific Technical High School with only four children. On the part of the Ministry, it was reported that specific Primary Schools "supply" these Gymnasiums with students due to the areas in which they operate, and the numbers are low. However, it was said that a new briefing on the institution is planned in September, expecting better results.
