Weak schools and overcrowded classrooms. Poor infrastructure increases the suffering of the Iraqi teacher

Adel Fakher - Baghdad

Unlike in the 1970s and 1980s, in which education in Iraq was the best in the Middle East in terms of infrastructure, curricula and level of teaching, according to many international organizations, including the Organization of Education, Culture and Science (UNESCO), the reality of education is currently declining due to the weak structures. Infrastructure, which has increased the suffering of teachers and students alike.

Another major reason for this is the weak government interest in it through the small financial allocations allocated to it, compared to other sectors and the absence of investment factor, as well as the low volume of privileges for the teacher.

"The educational reality in Iraq is going through a crisis and decline for many reasons that cannot be counted. The privileges granted to teachers do not rise to the level of ambition. The teacher, for example, does not have housing or health insurance, and his salary is not enough to meet his and his family's needs." "Moreover, the Ministry of Education is not interested in raising its educational level by providing developmental courses, especially with changing curricula."

Al-Sudani confirmed to Al Jazeera Net that "the teacher suffers because the entire educational process suffers because of political quotas through the selection of ministers from a political bloc or a certain political current, and that the infrastructure of schools is dilapidated, as well as the lack of schools and the bilateral and triple attendance in schools, which negatively affected The performance of the educational process, and therefore can not apply any global experience taken from the countries that have developed in the field of education, because of the dilapidated infrastructure of educational reality.

Development of cadres
The Ministry of Education is working to develop teaching staff through developmental courses, in cooperation with UNESCO, the British Council and UNICEF inside and outside Iraq, and activate teacher protection laws in coordination with the Teachers Union, according to ministry spokesman Firas Mohammed.

Mohamed said in an interview with Al Jazeera Net that "all the funds allocated to infrastructure has been transferred to the provincial councils since 2013, and became the construction of schools and renovation of the responsibility of the provinces, pointing out that Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi launched a national campaign to build 3000 schools in coordination with supporters To the ministry, pending implementation. "

In mid-February, Iraqi teachers staged a general strike to protest the government's failure to meet their demands, notably the reform of the education sector and the improvement of their living conditions, in the first strike of this magnitude after the US invasion of the country in 2003, involving 750,000 teachers in 14 provinces. However, it did not achieve the desired results.

Overcrowded rows
Al-Jazeera Net also surveyed the views of some students on the educational reality, including student Ahmed Haidar (12) years in the sixth grade primary, who complained about the overcrowding of his class in his school located east of Baghdad, and says that it includes about 50 students, and seats are not enough for this The number, although originally designed to accommodate 25 students, is forcing some students to sit on the floor, impairing their ability to absorb. "

Walaa Nasih, a 17-year-old student in the fifth grade of science, said that "the majority of schools, including our middle school, lack some means of clarification, and overcrowded classes, and this affects the absorption, which compels us to enroll in private institutes for strengthening lessons, especially in some subjects such as mathematics. And English and biology, and this costs our people extravagant amounts added to their shoulders. "

The teacher Mohammed Shabib said that "our suffering is the low salaries and privileges, where they are not consistent with our efforts in teaching, and may be the majority of state employees and all over the world working while sitting on their desks, only the teacher is standing for hours."

He pointed out that the teacher works in an environment that lacks health services, electricity, clean water, air conditioning and other basic requirements, which requires the removal of the educational sector from partisan quotas in the assumption of ministers and general directors and those responsible for the educational sector, and to grant these positions to the competent and experienced to advance the reality of education. .