New bill would give teachers more rights in the class room
A draft law being drawn up by the Ministry of Education will give, if passed, teachers the right to search childrens' school bags and apprehend those misbehaving, among other rights.
The measures are part of a drive to make the teaching profession more popular after the ministry identified the lack of people willing to become teachers as a major problem, Eesti Päevaleht reported.
The new rights will include being able to search the school bag, pocket, locker of a pupil, having the right to temporarily confiscate banned items, evict drunk or dangerous people from school territory and apprehend angry, drunk or otherwise misbehaving children until the arrival of parents, the police or an ambulance.
“It is not about wanting to punish someone, but if a teacher wants to check a students bag in an attempt to stave off danger, currently the teacher must call the police,” education minister Jürgen Ligi said.
Ligi said increasing teachers' salaries to 1.2 times that of the national average would also popularize the profession, adding that the bill would also have a positive effect.
The bill is expected to be ready in about a year.
Editor: J.M. Laats