Chaos ensued today in schools following the decision by the Ministry of Transport to temporarily suspend school buses for inspections of their mechanical condition, especially after the recent incident where a vehicle carrying children caught fire.
Approximately 6,000 students from Secondary and Technical Education were reportedly absent, at least during the first hour of their classes, according to information from philenews.
Sources from the Ministry of Education revealed that the absenteeism rate reached 15%, which is 11% higher than the average daily absentee rate of 4%.
The most significant issues were identified in Paphos and Famagusta. However, a portion of the 6,000 students eventually went to school for the subsequent teaching periods.
Education Minister Athena Michaelidou, speaking to RIK, assured that the students’ absences would be addressed.
“We will find solutions as the children are in a critical period, just before their exams, and we do not want them to miss lessons. We will consider various options, including distance learning or even starting classes a little later.” She expressed the hope that it would not take many days for the bus routes to operate smoothly.
Nevertheless, Loizos Constantinou, the president of the Parents Association of Secondary Education, expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that parents were informed about this change in transportation for students at the last minute.
“Several students missed classes in Paphos, where the problem is more significant, as well as in Famagusta. There is a school where up to 20% of children were absent,” he said, adding that the initial assessment indicates that 10% to 15% had difficulty attending classes.
