| A total of 154 teachers were dismissed from the public education system last year following the intervention of the Teaching Service Commission (TSC), according to a statement issued by the body yesterday.Many of the dismissals, according to the detailed statements, stemmed from unauthorised absence from duty or failure to provide the required statutory notice when resigning.It was revealed that the Disciplinary Committee of the TSC deliberated on a large number of complaints sent to the Commission by several stakeholders and members of the community throughout the regions of Guyana.Among the complaints received were that teachers fought amongst themselves, operated under the influence of alcohol, unpunctuality and habitual lateness, flogging of children without authority, misappropriation of school funds, carnal knowledge, forgery of certificates/qualifications, inadequate work preparation, improper or late completion and distribution of report cards, poor record keeping, leaving students unsupervised during school visits, use of school premises/property without permission, defacement of records,Cheap China Jerseys Authentic, inefficiency and poor supervision.The TSC, according to the statement, has observed the development of a disturbing feature where a number of complaints are sent directly to the TSC and this causes undue delay in addressing complaints and efficiently discharging its constitutional mandate.As such the statement highlighted that “it is very important that the Regions conduct their investigations and forward their reports to the TSC.Complaints must be sent to TSC through the appropriate channel with accompanying recommendations from Ministry officials.”Following this phase the Commission will then conduct its own investigations after receiving reports from the Regions.While some complaints were resolved at school level, the more serious offences were dealt with by the Disciplinary Committee of the Commission.On those occasions when the Disciplinary Committee of the TSC received reports of serious offences, the errant teachers were sent on leave until proper investigations were conducted.In some instances, teachers were interdicted from duty pending the outcome of the investigation and final determination of the matter.However, it is hoped that with the appointment of many more Schools’ Welfare Officers this year and with closer supervision by the Regional Education Officers, the TSC will see a reduction in offences.In addition, the TSC visited a number of Regions during last year and has held meetings with Head Teachers and cluster meetings with all levels of teachers.“This was a productive exercise as teachers were informed of the function and responsibility of the TSC and were updated on any new regulations or procedures. These visits also provided the opportunity to resolve many pending matters for teachers,” the statement emphasised.The TSC further discovered that “rationalisation” was a very ‘sore’ subject in almost every Region. At the request of the Ministry of Education and on the basis of over-staffing at some schools, the TSC transferred many teachers to schools recommended by the Regional Education Officers and some were very dissatisfied with their transfers for a number of reasons.Preparation is now in train for the scoring and processing of applications submitted for Senior promotions for 2010. Thereafter, interviews will be conducted before the final promotion exercise.The Preliminary results for Senior Promotion for 2010 are expected to be released by the first week in June 2010. |
