‘Feverish preparations underway for start of school year’

Staff are feverishly preparing for the new school year, Education Minister Athena Michaelidou said, explaining that the summer months are especially important to prepare for all the new changes ahead.

Speaking to journalists after the end of memorial service in Paphos, Michaelidou noted that for the Ministry of Education, the summer months are more important for the preparation of the new school year.

In addition to the new elements introduced for the student evaluation in secondary education, she said, “we also have new programmes, the main ones of which have to do with preschool education.”

According to the minister, they will emphasise early focus for many issues, including violence and delinquency, literacy, attitudes, resilience of children, informing children from a very early age, so that at older ages educators can focus more on their academic performance rather than behavioural issues.

With reference to the logistical issues of the schools, Michaelidou mentioned that very serious work has been done this year, especially for the issues that have to do with the safety of the children.

“For us, the safety of the children is very important, all school authorities have been asked to record such issues so that they can be immediately resolved, so that the children go to school in a safe environment, that is not only educationally, but structurally sound,” she said.

That is why, she said, both the school boards and the technical services of the Ministry of Education are on their feet so that they do not have any security issues.

Michaelidou admitted that there will be schools under construction and there always will be because it is a continuous dynamic process to repair and improve and they must pursue it as long as all the safety measures for the children are observed.