The reform project would create links between social science training and the educator diploma, which would shorten the duration of the training.
While this is the Ministry of Education’s way of addressing the shortage of educators, the petitioner argued that Luxembourg needs “quality rather than hasty solutions”.
Since 2021, secondary school graduates in social sciences can jump directly to the final year at the Technical Secondary School for Educational and Social Professions (LTPES), and follow a training to become a qualified educator in one year instead of three. For petitioner Francis Hoven, this would lead to new graduates significantly lacking in practical experience.
Hoven argued that “an internship is real life”. It allows students to put theory into practice and build their own “educational identity and attitude”, which are “extremely important” in professional life, according to Hoven.
Hoven believes that students should be won over to the profession earlier. He pointed out that the social sciences section in secondary schools consistently has the most students, suggesting that the Ministry could think of ways to let these students enter in the penultimate year instead of just the final year.
Minister of Education Claude Meisch stated that this was a pilot project and that he was open to discussions with the sector. Another solution would be to introduce a Diploma of Professional Aptitude (DAP) in education. Meisch explained that his patience “had already been tested” because there had not been any progress for the longest time. The Ministry had discussions with many different actors, and a DAP in education was one of the ideas that came up, according to the Minister.
Yves Kails, the secretary of the Luxembourg Association of Educators (ALEE), criticised the project’s approach, accusing the Ministry of once again announcing major changes without discussing it with anyone beforehand. Kails also pointed out that according to a study by the University of Luxembourg, there is a shortage of 800 educators.
The president of the Petitions Committee, Nancy Arendt, stated that the petition came “at a good time”. She announced that they will wait for the evaluation of the project and then discuss the points raised in the Education Committee, including a second site for the LTPES.
