Debates
NRC is checking the pulse of schools and of Roma parents
Debates in Gostivar and Bitola
Open day for the Roma parents in schools where their children are studying, in order to provide better cooperation. The Roma students should study along with the Macedonian students and with other nationalities. Free lunch for Roma children. These are just few of the recommendations and demands that teachers, principals, psychologists, local inspectors for education, as well as Roma parents pointed out on a debates that National Roma Centrum from Kumanovo has organized in Gostivar and Bitola in the beginning of March this year. How to find new ways of communication with the Roma parents in order their children to be more regular at school, to have better results was the subject of discussion that the representatives from NRC began. But, the debate was expanded on other, more important problems that schools are facing in every day life. The debate in Gostivar was held in the elementary school “Bashkimi” and in Bitola it was in the elementary school “Kole Kaninski”.
It is priority to discuss about the relation among the schools and the parents and the children. Money planed for lunch is not parent’s responsibility. Maybe schools too must try something to bettered up the situation, maybe the schools should talk to local businessmen and ask for help, suggested Muhamed Tochi, a member of the school board in the school “Bashkimi”.
As positive experience of that school, he noted that the parents Council has Roma because of the NGO’s and school. He also suggested that school must implement program for informing the Roma parents if some problem will occur. According to him, the parents now, are getting information too late or they are invited on some meetings in school.
When school sees that there’s a problem, the representatives must call the parent on time, suggested Tochi.
Regarding the additional classes for children with low grades, he thinks that there were attempts to be organized that kind of class, but at the most of the time, teachers are not motivated or ask for additional money. But, additional classes are good opportunity so the children can improve their grades. Muhamed sent a demand so that the other people to share their experience.
My family has seven members, and no one is employed. You can’t do anything with social help of 1.200 denars (20 euros). Nevertheless that the books were free this school year, there are additional books that should be provided and paid. In my time, the poor people at least had food at school, we don’t have that today. There are children that wants to study, but don’t have opportunity, says Agus Rustemov, grand father of a student in Bitola
Stojna Stameska, the pedagogist in “Bashkimi” said that there are Roma that are aboriginal and children of those people are regular at school and they are equal in everything, but there are Roma that are not from Gostivar originally and they cause problems most of the time. Other problem, according to her, is that in the first grade there are children with different age. This problem is present in the whole country and it should be regulated as soon as possible.
Asmet Elezovski, coordinator of the project confirmed that this is really huge problem and said that it is already talked with the Government’s representatives and he hopes that this problem will be solved in September.
The most important thing is that the children are not on the streets, but in the schools. Illiteracy is the main reason why in some cases children are repeating the class. Also, there is a gap in the Law for primary education, there are children from 10 till 14 years that never been included in the system, but there are amendments for this, said Elezovski.
About the proposals for frequent meetings with the parents, the pedagogist of the school answered that their relation with the parents is on a very high level compared with the past years. He said that there’s an open class for the parents and open meetings with them. During that open class with the parents, they can freely be present on the classes and see how we teach. Compared with the past years, the number of visits has increased from 10 to 60 percent.
On the debate in Bitola, the drop-outs was the main issue for discussion. And also, are capable to be in school and why in some classes there are only Roma students?
Zoran Demirov from the organization “Roma nook” from Bitola emphasized that in the elementary school “Gjorgji Sugarev” there are classes only with Roma children because Macedonian children are signing out from those classes. In the discussion participated Agus Rustemov, grand father of a student and said that the Roma children in Bitola don’t have language barriers and they should study along with children from the other nationalities because the Roma from Bitola speak Macedonian. He said that in his time, he studied in mixed classes and children at that time had bigger grades and they were motivated and they were helping each other.
Mirjana Stojkova, the pedagogits from the school “Goce Delcev” said that there were only seven Roma students in the lower classes in that school. There’s a problem with one the children, but because he is not coming at school on a regular basis. According to her, the problem why there are more children in the school “Gjorgji Sugarev” is because of the area. She noted the need for bigger education of Roma parents. She said that there are a lot of children who live far away from school, but they are very regular at school.
Asked what is the reason for the drop-outs, Zagorka Jovchevska, the principal of “Gjorgji Sugarev” said that the reason might be the fact that there are many students in the first grade who are much older than they should be for that stage of their education. The Ministry for education asked to be opened classes only for older students. As a problem, she noted the fact that for Roma children there is no limit for signing in into schools, because they start in May this year and ends in May, next year. In the school “Gjorgji Sugarev” there are 120 dropped-out student only in the first grade. She suggested education of the Roma parents. There are cases where parents are going on a season work and they take their children with them, added the principal of the school.
Agus Rustemov, the grand – father of a student mentioned several problems why children are not going to school: bad weather conditions, season work on a fields through out Macedonia, financial reasons, not having clothes.
My family has seven members, and no one is employed. You can’t do anything with social help of 1.200 denars (20 euros). Nevertheless that the books were free this school year, there are additional books that should be provided and paid. In my time, the poor people at least had food at school, we don’t have that today. There are children that wants to study, but don’t have opportunity, said Rustemov.
