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There can be no constant demands and demands, without obligations. It is not possible that some teachers refuse to describe their work, accept the evaluation of their school unit, but constantly seek responsibilities in the ministry, emphasizes in his intervention through Liberal.gr for the main theme of performance measurement. of the educational world, the former Minister of Education Marietta Giannakou, since “its knowledge and transmission are void of content if we cannot measure the learning results.”
“How can union teachers be happy when they encounter long delays of Greek students, as recorded by the prestigious international periodic assessment of the OECD PISA?” Does the country have the luxury of depriving children with excellent development prospects of great potential throughout the country? “Asks the former minister.
And remember in every way that the image of Greek education is mediocre by European standards, and this is mainly to the detriment of the weak social strata.
The object of evaluation, he says, should be to highlight those teaching methods that highlight the work of teachers, who in turn should not be afraid of evaluation, but rather record the strengths of their practices, and understand others that will improve their work. . .
Interview with George Fintikakis
– The debate on the evaluation of schools and teachers since September has been definitively opened, and the unions ask that teachers abstain en masse. In your experience as a former Minister of Education, what is your opinion? What should be evaluated as a priority?
Unfortunately, I see that teacher unions disagree with well-established perceptions among teachers, students, and parents of students. There is still a denial of evaluation. However, knowledge and its transmission are void of content if we cannot measure learning outcomes.
How can union teachers be happy when they find large backlogs of Greek students, as recorded in the prestigious international periodic assessment of the OECD PISA?
I believe that a coordinated effort with an honest dialogue from all sides will quell the fears of many teachers about the results of the assessment. After all, through the teacher training programs available to the Ministry of Education, many deficiencies in the learning process can be corrected.
– How should the evaluation results be used? What will happen on stage when a significant part of the teachers and professors are “rated” negatively by the evaluators? What should be done with those who do not comply with the evaluation?
Each evaluation process includes a set of parameters in accordance with internationally applicable criteria. Consequently, the teacher is not evaluated individually, detached from the educational unit and from all the infrastructure and means of control provided by the State.
It would be unfair for a single factor to load the existing weaknesses of the education system. However, it is necessary to highlight the educational practices that highlight the work of teachers. Instead of sanctions, teachers should record the strengths of their practices and understand other practices that will substantially improve their work.
– Why is it so difficult for Greek governments to respond to society’s demand for better education? Are the stakes so great that it is difficult for governments to proceed with teacher evaluation? Why do they put the interests of trade unionists before the interests of society?
The teacher is the medium and the transmission of knowledge to the students is the purpose, not the other way around. Unfortunately, in Greece, the unions, under various pretexts, seek to relinquish their share of responsibility. There can be no requests and demands without obligations. Some teachers cannot refuse to describe their work, accept the evaluation of their school unit, but constantly seek responsibilities in the ministry.
The image of Greek education is mediocre by European standards, and this is especially detrimental to the weak social strata. Does the country have the luxury of depriving children with excellent potential throughout the territory of good development prospects?
Unions must not forget that if the evaluation reveals serious deficiencies in the provision of the necessary means to teachers for the performance of their work, the State must provide these means so that the evaluation is truly balanced.
In the law that I proposed in 2005 for the evaluation of universities, the provision was that the State should not waive its obligations if a deficit is found for it and restore the conditions of good practices that improve education. And of course, at the university level, teachers are also judged by students who, without their name, send their written comments to the evaluators.
I observe that the evaluation at the university level led to the creation of ADIP – Supreme Authority for Internal and External Evaluation and the Greek universities in the top 500 in the ranking shown by several serious organizations and that if this law did not exist the country would be directed directly in the non-recognition of degrees by Greece in the context of the European Higher Education Area.
– In a recent article here on Liberal.gr, Stefanos Manos had argued that an inviolable and easy way for the Ministry of Education to make a first evaluation of the 1,350 high schools in the country, would be to publish the average results in the pan- Hellenic high schools of each Lyceum the last five years. Do you agree with this proposal?
Dear Mr. Manos proposal is correct and I support it. There are many possibilities to measure the quality of the work of school units. This is also a requirement of parents of all levels, who are anxious if the school they will send their children to operates under a team of dedicated teachers. Where this is the case, we must highlight it and in this way motivate other schools to respond to the competition.
I know of schools in underprivileged areas that do important work and have educated many generations of students, offering a better perspective. In Greece, good public education has always been a lever for social mobility and a means to address social inequalities.
