The status and employment conditions of education support personnel, young and early stage teachers, and researchers were addressed during Education International’s 7th World Congress.
Education support personnel
Casualisation is a challenge for education support personnel, said Daniel B Lafrenière, Centrale des syndicats du Québec (Canada), who proposed the Resolution (2.1) on Education Support Personnel on behalf of EI’s Executive Board.
Speakers on the resolution highlighted the need to support those workers who also contribute to quality education and to improve their terms and conditions. Amongst other things, the resolution mandates the Executive Board to launch an annual EI International Support Personnel Day.
Contributors to the discussion came from unions in Poland, the US, Mexico, Brazil, Sri Lanka, Australia, New Zealand, and Algeria.
Young and early stage teachers
Johanna Jaara Åstrand, Lärarförbundet (Sweden) proposed Resolution 2.2 on Young and Early Stage Teachers and Support Personnel on behalf of EI’s Executive Board. In outlining the principles of the resolution, she said it urges EI member organisations to promote training, peer counselling, and continuous professional development for these teachers.
Contributors to the debate raised the issues of job security for young teachers and the need for training. Speakers includes delegates from unions in Trinidad and Tobago, the US, Mexico, Norway, New Zealand, Finland, Algeria, Benin, France, and Switzerland.
Research
“Academic freedom is at the centre of quality research,” said Patrick Monfort, SNCF-FSU (France) who proposed Resolution 2.6: Public research, scientific and academic freedoms. Seconding the resolution, James Compton of the Canadian Association of University Teachers said that academic freedom is under attack, with policies around science “hijacked by conservative governments” with a move to “market-driven research”.
The resolution states that research is free and calls on EI to initiate a global campaign in support of freedom of research and academic freedom.
Speakers in the debate were union activists from Canada, Colombia, Ireland, and Argentina. They raised concerns about privatisation, the commodification of knowledge and attacks on researchers, decreased funding for research.