[etni] The Strike and the Future
- From: Andrew Wilson <andrew_israel@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 27 Nov 2007 06:56:55 +0000
After the demonstration at Kikar Rabin I dared to hope that in the end
something would work out. It also seemed to bring us all together, both Irgun
and Histadrut members. I thought that surely someone somewhere would get the
message. How naïve of me.
Having watched the press conference yesterday evening, I have for the first
time lost all hope. Ran Erez was right when he said that forcing teachers to go
back to work without a suitable agreement will not make them better teachers. I
would like to think that, years from now, those people in the government and
the Treasury will look back and hang their heads in sorrow when they realise
how they undermined and crippled education in Israel. However, the chances are
that they will be as detached from reality then as they are now...
Where will it all end? It seems to me (and we are seeing the initial signs of
this already) that private schools will spring up, offering the kind of
education that government schools are unable to give. I would imagine these
schools would offer more competitive salaries than those offered by the
Ministry of Education (not a particularly difficult task). Students who come to
these 'extra-curricular' classes will also become less motivated during their
regular school studies (if they come at all) assuming that the private teacher
will make up for what they don't listen to in the morning. Moreover, the
teaching of English will be totally exam-oriented with none of the 'fun' extras
that we try to allow ourselves in spite of the heavy workload. And worst of
all, good education will become a privilege of the rich.
I sincerely hope that I am terribly wrong, but the future looks very bleak to
me at the moment. It has been a long time since my ideals as a teacher and
educator have 'gleamed'. At the moment they are 'flickering' and I am expecting
them to 'vanish away' pretty soon. Or perhaps I should relate to another "oldie
but goodie" from the literature shelves and just come to terms with the fact
that I am watching my star go out.
Finally, I have to say that when I look at our students of today, they are
generally speaking good kids with a lot to offer. Unfortunately the older
generation – the one that so patronisingly acts as if it knows best – is giving
them a very raw deal. I hope our children remember this and give their younger
generation the best education they can. The education they deserve.
Andrew Wilson
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