NPO 'not feasible' due to teacher shortage, work pressure and school cancellations
The National Education Program (NPO) for eliminating the corona backlog of students is not feasible. This is due to staff shortages, high work pressure and school cancellations. Say this AObmembers in a survey.
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'There is more than enough money, but there are no staff within the school who can do the extra work.' 'The short term in which the money has to be spent makes it almost impossible to ensure lasting improvement in educational results.' “A mountain of money is being thrown over the fence, and the school is allowed to sort it out. But there's no time and no staff.'
That's three of the responses in one AObsurvey completed by some 1900 secondary school teachers.
Education is ready for a delta plan - not a bridging plan
The respondents mainly criticize the fact that the 8,5 billion euros from the NPO must be spent within two years. “It is good in itself that the cabinet is allocating 8,5 billion euros to help the education sector,” he said AOb-chairman Tamar van Gelder together. “But you cannot solve the underlying problems such as the teacher shortage, the declining quality of education, the workload and increasing inequality of opportunity. Structural resources are needed for this. Both in secondary education, where this survey was conducted, and in primary education. The situation is completely similar.”
Workload
Of the respondents, 84 percent indicate that the NPO is not feasible in the current situation, due to the teacher shortage, work pressure and the cancellation of classes due to corona. “The workload is enormous and there are no more staff to be found,” says Van Gelder. “Possession pools have dried up. There are no more extra hands at school, because this staff fills the gaps created by the teacher shortage.”
Tutoring agency
Tutoring and employment agencies benefit from this situation. Van Gelder: “Our survey shows that almost 60 percent of schools with NPO funding hire staff from commercial agencies. This makes schools more dependent on external parties.” The Education Council also warns in its recently published advice 'Public character comes first' that public and private education are becoming more and more intertwined.
Concentration
Many teachers are very concerned, the survey shows. Almost 60 percent of them see that students are delayed in their subjects. More than 70 percent see that students are less motivated since corona, and almost three quarters of teachers are concerned about the well-being of the students. More than 80 percent of teachers indicate that students have a harder time concentrating, compared to before corona.
Delta Plan
De AOb plead in one letter to the House of Representatives to convert the remaining amount of the NPO into a smaller, if necessary, but structural amount. “Then the money can be spent more carefully and the situation in education can be improved sustainably,” says Van Gelder. “Education needs a delta plan and not a bridging plan.”
