The Education Minister Athena Michaelidou has defended her ministry’s approach to reforming teacher evaluation systems after criticism from OELMEK, the secondary school teachers’ union, according to a letter seen by philenews.
Michaelidou said the current staged dialogue process is appropriate for developing the new evaluation proposal, whilst criticising the union’s stance as “unproductive”.
She noted that the majority of OELMEK’s suggestions regarding pre-tenure teacher evaluation had been considered in the first phase of discussions.
“Our education system has a unique opportunity to move away from outdated practices and become more effective for our students’ benefit”, Michaelidou said.
She added that feedback from teachers across all levels has been “very encouraging”.
The minister expressed concern over OELMEK’s refusal to participate in the phased consultation process, with the union insisting on waiting for a complete proposal before engaging.
According to Michaelidou, this approach deprives the secondary education community of meaningful participation in shaping the new system.
The dispute highlights ongoing tensions between the ministry and teachers’ unions over the reform of Cyprus’s educational evaluation framework.
