Written by Mom Kunthear and Christopher Shay
The Phnom Penh Post
Ministry of Education calls the Cambodia Independent Teachers Association ‘a group of uneducated people' over its report.
THE Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport lashed out at the Cambodia Independent Teachers Association (CITA) on Friday following the group's release of a teacher survey critical of Cambodia's education system.
CITA claimed that underpaid teachers lead to a corrupt education system where students must pay teachers to attend class, forcing the poorest students to drop out and teachers to lose their social dignity.
In a press release, the Ministry of Education dismissed CITA's findings, calling the teachers association "a group of uneducated people".
In The, the director general of administration and finance at the ministry, said CITA's sample size of 460 teachers out of a workforce of more than 110,000 was not large enough for significant results and questioned how the respondents were chosen.
"I don't know where the statistics came from. It's unacceptable for that many teachers and students not to attend school, but that's not how it works," In The said, referring to CITA's claim that 53.9 percent of teachers occasionally skip school to earn money outside the classroom.
In The admitted that Cambodian schools still have room for improvement but said the picture is not nearly as bleak as the CITA survey suggests.
"Education in our country today is better than before because there are more schools, and we are still building more in people's communities."
But Rong Chhun, the president of CITA, said the Ministry of Education simply does not want to admit how poor the quality of schooling is in the Kingdom.
"The Ministry of Education's press release shows they just want to hide their weaknesses. They do not dare accept the truths about the system they created," he said Sunday.
Despite the government's dismissal of their conclusions, CITA is not alone in stressing the need to raise salaries.
The NGO Education Partnership said in a December 2008 report that raising teacher salaries was a "top priority".
"It is impossible to earn a living on a teacher's salary in Cambodia," the group said.
THE Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport lashed out at the Cambodia Independent Teachers Association (CITA) on Friday following the group's release of a teacher survey critical of Cambodia's education system.
CITA claimed that underpaid teachers lead to a corrupt education system where students must pay teachers to attend class, forcing the poorest students to drop out and teachers to lose their social dignity.
In a press release, the Ministry of Education dismissed CITA's findings, calling the teachers association "a group of uneducated people".
In The, the director general of administration and finance at the ministry, said CITA's sample size of 460 teachers out of a workforce of more than 110,000 was not large enough for significant results and questioned how the respondents were chosen.
"I don't know where the statistics came from. It's unacceptable for that many teachers and students not to attend school, but that's not how it works," In The said, referring to CITA's claim that 53.9 percent of teachers occasionally skip school to earn money outside the classroom.
In The admitted that Cambodian schools still have room for improvement but said the picture is not nearly as bleak as the CITA survey suggests.
"Education in our country today is better than before because there are more schools, and we are still building more in people's communities."
But Rong Chhun, the president of CITA, said the Ministry of Education simply does not want to admit how poor the quality of schooling is in the Kingdom.
"The Ministry of Education's press release shows they just want to hide their weaknesses. They do not dare accept the truths about the system they created," he said Sunday.
Despite the government's dismissal of their conclusions, CITA is not alone in stressing the need to raise salaries.
The NGO Education Partnership said in a December 2008 report that raising teacher salaries was a "top priority".
"It is impossible to earn a living on a teacher's salary in Cambodia," the group said.
8 comments:
It's the Communist CPP way of controlling the people - keeping them hungery, fearful, and stupid! Their Youn masters taught them well!
The CPP HANOI BACKING GOVERNMENT IS GOOD FOR NOTHING BUT CURRUPTIONS AND NO TRANSPARENCY!
SHAME ON THE DICTATOR HANOI AND THIER CLOWNS PUPPET CPP.
It takes one to know one. If the teachers being surveyed were "a group of uneducated teachers" then the ministry's officials who hired and approved their credentials were also another group of "uneducated officials". Samar samputho!!!
Sometimes I wonder who is the curent the Minister of Education? Is he an educated person?
Nop!
wow... I can not believe what I am reading! they call a group of teacher the uneducated people! What a disappointed reaction/comment from ministry of uneducation... So pity for the teachers! I was once a teacher too, gentlemen, there is no way but to accept something offer from students. How am I suppose to live with 25$ a month and act as a teacher? It is even worse that you teach in university level with such a low living standard... I have to walk out the university teaching career to a private company where 50 times paid!
Oh! my beloving country Cambodia when will those people all pass away... May all the spirit of death take those deny deny deny living death to the true death!
Hi Minister of Education Ministry,
You did not accept the findings of CITA becuase you did not know your weakness and strenght for improvement leading you an uneducated Minister of Education. I am in Cambodia, I know well the situation here. Your announcement via the TVK is just to support and to try to gain favors of the Hun Sen.
Cpp leader is Youn's dogs
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