Teaching staff in Luxembourg are raising renewed concerns about conditions in primary schools, citing unsustainable pressures that are limiting their ability to support every child. The sentiment was voiced by Patrick Remakel, President of the teachers’ union SNE, which is part of the General Confederation of the Civil Service (CGFP), during an interview with our colleagues from RTL Radio on Wednesday morning.
According to Remakel, teachers who are dedicated to their profession are “reaching their limits.” He stated that teachers feel their ongoing concerns are not being adequately addressed, leading to a worsening situation. In response, the SNE has launched a new public awareness campaign under the hashtag #NETesou (“Not Like This”).
Remakel identified the integration of students with significant behavioural issues as the most urgent problem. Where schools might have previously dealt with one or two such cases, he claimed there is now at least one in every class. He noted that incidents requiring police or ambulance intervention are “unfortunately” no longer rare.
The union president argued that mainstream schools are no longer the appropriate environment for these students. He clarified that the goal is not exclusion, but rather providing targeted support that, in the SNE’s view, cannot be delivered effectively in a regular classroom. “These children need to be temporarily removed from mainstream schooling,” Remakel stated.
While acknowledging that the Ministry of Education has increased staffing to promote inclusion, Remakel contended that these resources are not always deployed correctly. He called for more targeted use of support personnel for the children who need them most.
Remakel also emphasised that addressing the issue requires broader societal responsibility, stressing the need to collectively model and teach respect to children.
The discussion also addressed the introduction of new literacy classes in French. While the SNE is not opposed in principle, Remakel argued the timing is inappropriate.
Remakel stated that the Ministry of Education should have waited another two to three years, allowing the first cohort of students from current pilot projects to advance to secondary school. In the interim, he suggested, the French literacy model could have been tested more extensively in select individual schools to gather further practical experience.
