The Educational Service Commission (EEY) has confirmed that some teaching graduates still on Cyprus’s public school appointment list submitted their degrees as far back as 1983, meaning they have waited 43 years for a posting. The figures were provided to philenews amid ongoing debate over the teacher appointment system.
Over the past three years, 310 candidates have been struck off the appointment list after reaching the retirement age limit, set at 65 for secondary education and 62 for primary education, EEY data shows. Of those removed, 279 were on the secondary education list across various specialities, while the remaining 31 were on the primary education list.
Some of those removed may have served in schools over the years, while others may never have had the opportunity. EEY figures show that each year, when candidates are struck off the list due to age, the process also identifies how many never received an appointment at all.
Candidates nearing the age limit tend to accept a posting if even one year of service remains. Others, often those with alternative employment, may decline an appointment for their final year or two before retirement, with acceptance ultimately depending on each candidate’s individual circumstances.
Yesterday, EEY president Panayiotis Antoniou discussed school staffing levels ahead of the new school year, due to start in a few days, on ANT1’s midday programme “Mera Mesimeri”. Antoniou said the remaining gaps stem from teachers declining appointments, and that the EEY was ready to fill any vacancies immediately.
As of Wednesday, 40 teachers had declined an appointment, Antoniou said. Only one of those cases involved the immediate-appointment list, while the remaining 39 concerned candidates on the appointment list.
“It’s logical,” Antoniou said, adding that after so many years of waiting, most candidates would have found employment elsewhere in the meantime.
Asked about school leadership, an issue raised annually by teaching unions, Antoniou said the biggest shortfall was in pre-primary education, where most kindergartens are run by officers-in-charge rather than appointed principals.
Asked for his personal view on the wider debate over the appointment system, Antoniou said he favoured introducing an examination to rank candidates by score, followed by a preparatory programme before they enter the classroom.
