In an ideal world, public education should be the preferred option for parents to educate their children. Unfortunately, in reality, most parents who can afford to pay the fees for their children’s private education in Malta opt to do so.

This trend is not necessarily justified by empirical evidence of better educational outcomes in the private school sector, and it hides an underlying weakness in all sectors of the education system. The teaching profession is distressed, as evidenced by various indicators often ignored by policymakers.

The decision of the Malta Union of Teachers (MUT) to call for its members in public and Church schools to follow its directives and to strike on November 27 has raised the usual issues whenever stakeholders are affected by those who refrain from giving an essential service.

Parents of children with learning difficulties understandably showed concern about the immediate risks their children will face due to some of the directives.

MUT president Marco Bonnici argues: “Once the MUT issues a directive, it affects operations involving students. There is no directive which impacts no one, otherwise, it would not be a directive.”

Indeed, the MUT could and should have exempted its members working with vulnerable children from the directive that is causing unnecessary distress to parents.

Bonnici justified the industrial action because the government had made two “insulting” financial proposals that were unacceptable to the union. Prime Minister Robert Abela said the government’s proposed work conditions were “strong, responsible and sustainable”.

Hopefully conciliation meetings between the MUT and the education authorities will lead to a cancellation of the strike action and the withdrawal of directives. However, the symptoms of a teaching profession that is in distress must be addressed by a comprehensive reform of the education system.

One of the symptoms of distress is that the educational achievement levels remain among the worst in the EU. While teachers’ take-home pay does not reflect the value that the country should put on education, little seems to be done to embed higher standards to judge the performance of educators. Most other professions have accepted rigid performance-related pay strategies to improve outcomes, but the assessment of the performance of educators is often not results-oriented.

The National Statistics Office confirms that the teaching profession is not attracting sufficient male graduates, with only about 30 per cent of male teachers in the system. The reasons for this trend must be investigated to understand the different dynamics that drive female and male graduates to choose teaching as a career.

Teachers are divided on the trade union front, with some opting to join the MUT while others prefer the Union of Professional Educators. The turf war between these two unions is another indication of the inward-looking mindset of some trade unionists. Division only leads to the demoralisation of educators who expect their representatives to speak with one voice.

Meaningful education reform that should lead to better achievement outcomes, better working conditions, and higher standards of performance for educators cannot be achieved piecemeal.

Still, this most critical reform will determine the country’s future economic and social prosperity.

It is time for education policymakers, trade unions, parents, employers, and other stakeholders to understand that all aspects of education reform must be urgently tackled for the country to thrive.