1 week Ago By James Cummings
Year 11 students who are sitting their GCSEs but use a Learning Support Educator (LSE) have been told to stay at home for two months, according to the Ombudsman citing concerned parents. In a statement Monday, the Ombudsman's Commissioner for Education said it had received reports from parents that students assisted by Learning Support Educators (LSEs) had been told to stay home from Monday until June 29. “These parents have expressed concern that their year 11 children have been told to remain at home,” the Ombudsman said, adding the situation had been “exacerbated” by Union of Professional Educators (UPE) directives in place for the second year halting mid-year LSE transfers.
Defending the directives, the UPE accused the Education Ministry of “failure to engage constructively” with the union over the past two years, however, and said that if LSEs were needed elsewhere, “it should employ more LSEs rather than rely on a skeleton staff”. The Ombudsman said that while “preliminary information” indicated education authorities were providing a tailored course for LSE students over the affected period, “very few” parents had expressed interest. The lack of interest possibly indicated a “lack of proper consultation with these parents as to the needs of the children and the parents’ expectations,” it said.
Meanwhile, parents of Core Curriculum Programme (CCP) students in years seven to 10 were concerned their charges would also be asked to stay at home “at some stage in the future,” the Ombudsman noted. Urging all parties involved to safeguard students’ right to education, it said affected students “should not be subjected to improper discrimination because of their disability”. “The Commissioner also enjoins the stakeholders to bear constantly in mind the already heavy burden, both emotional and financial, being carried by the parents of these children, and hopes that nothing will be done to increase that burden”, it said.
In a statement on the directives later on Monday, the UPE said the ministry’s failure to engage with the union had “exacerbated tensions”. “Despite the UPE’s efforts to propose attainable solutions, the Ministry (DES) has remained silent, prioritising administrative convenience over student welfare,” it said. The directives, which it described as “decisive action” to address “critical concerns” of LSEs assigned to Year 11 students, had been upheld by “the majority” of Year 11 LSEs for the past two years, the UPE said.
It added the directives “prioritise the stability and continuity of support for students.” Questions were sent to the Education Ministry. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails.
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