NE part-time English teachers to be made permanent

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 July 2005, 03:12 GMT]
Two hundred and three part time English teachers of more than seven hundred and fifty serving in schools in the North East are to get permanent appointment with effect from Wednesday. Officials at the Provincial Ministry of Education in Trincomalee began scrutinizing their certificates and documents according to the 27/2001 Public Administration Ministry Monday and will continue till Tuesday, Mr.R.Thiyakalingam, and Provincial Education Ministry Secretary said

Appointment letters making them permanent will be handed over to the part time English language teachers by Mr.Thiayakalingam Wednesday morning at the latter's office, education sources said.

Education authorities had allowed the heads of several schools in the North East in the past to employ qualified persons to teach English language on contract basis to overcome the dearth of qualified English teachers.

About seven hundred persons were appointed. Majority of them have been serving for more than ten years. They were paid remuneration on hourly basis drawing a maximum of one thousand rupees per month without job security. However they were not considered for permanent status whenever the authorities recruited teachers, sources said.

Finally part time English teachers formed a trade union and held several protests and demonstrations in front of the Provincial Education Ministry demanding permanent appointment taking into consideration the service they rendered in past at a time there was severe shortage for teachers qualified to teach English language from primary classes, sources said.

Colombo education authorities due to representations made by NE parliamentarians and trade unions decided to absorb them into permanent cadres. Those who completed 180 days continuously on 1.10.2001 as part time teachers and possessed three passes in the GCE Advanced Level examination and passed English language in GCE Ordinary level with Credit pass or Distinction pass in the year 2000 have been selected for permanent appointment, provincial education ministry sources said.