For a week, students at the primary school in the village of Frëngovë, Struga, have not attended classes because their parents oppose the decision to combine the first and third grades. Ten children are expected to study in the combined class—seven first-graders and three third-graders. This arrangement became necessary after one of the teachers retired.
The parents oppose holding classes in a combined classroom and warn that the boycott will continue if the decision is not reconsidered.
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“We do not want our children to be educated in a combined class. We want them to study in the same way as their peers, in a separate class exclusively for first-grade students. We also call on the principal, the Ministry or any competent institution dealing with this issue to provide us with a copy of the decision. Our request is for this decision to be reconsidered. In our view, combined education is not at the level of regular education, because the teacher must devote the necessary attention to the first grade, just as she would in any other class,” said Egzona Jonuzi, a parent.
“First-grade children need to learn the letters. How can the teacher devote herself to all of them? She will work with the first-grade students for ten minutes and then with the second-grade students for ten minutes. If necessary, the children can be divided into smaller groups and two classes can be created, as has been done elsewhere, where their children also study. Our children deserve suitable conditions as well. It is unreasonable for third-grade students to study together with first-graders. It makes no sense,” said Lirim Ilazi, a parent.
“No parent supports this way of organizing classes. We want the children to have their own teacher, to study in suitable conditions and to have their own teacher,” declared Vlora Iljazi, a parent.
The parents are calling on the Municipality of Struga and the Ministry of Education to approve the creation of separate classes without delay. They stress that the children cannot be treated as numbers for the purpose of cutting costs or compensating for administrative shortcomings. The parents said they would continue to defend their request./Alsat.mk
