(lives here with the students) - On Sunday this week (8/9/24) at 23:30 p.m. before midnight, news was published in the media that surprised many, according to which it was decided in the teachers' organization to end the strike in the high schools, and that on the following Monday the upper division students would return to the classroom. The timing of the announcement was unexpected mainly in light of the repeated statements of the chairman of the organization, Ran Erez, that in his opinion the strike could continue for another two months, and that he has no intention of "folding down" in front of the Ministry of Finance.
It should be noted that although the general strike in high schools has been stopped, the teachers' blockades remain in place, as was the case for many months in the previous school year and even before that. This prevented the students from receiving their test scores, threatened the holding of graduation parties and prevented them from going on annual trips and holding activities outside of normal school hours.
Upon publication of the organization's decision, the National Council of Students and Youth issued an angry response and even called on the students not to come to the schools, claiming that the decision is not a solution for the students, who will continue to be harmed by the continuation of the sanctions.
After long discussions, the student council announced last night (Monday, 9/9/24) that the student strike would be stopped at this point and the students would return to regular studies, but at the same time they issued an ultimatum and announced that they would return to imposing sanctions, if the teachers' organization did not stop the sanctions by next Monday. 16/09/2024.
"On Monday, there was a strike in high schools at the initiative of the national student and youth council and the national leadership of parents, because the school year opened with sanctions from the teachers' organization. After we had long talks with all parties and after we received a status update from the negotiations, while realizing that it is close to a solution, a joint decision was made to open the studies Tomorrow (Tuesday) as usual, this is in order to allow the government and the teachers' organization to reach an agreement and to stop the strikes and sanctions. If the parties do not reach an agreement by Monday 16/9/24, the national student and youth council and the national parent leadership will initiate a course of extreme disruptions in the activities of the high school education system. Sanctions are not a school routine and we will not agree to normalize such a situation in high schools in Israel," the student council said.
The formations were reversed
And so, if until today the high schools were closed because the teachers' union was on strike, this week the tables were turned and the students and parents were the ones threatening a shutdown.
The chairman of the teachers' organization, Ran Erez, announced on Sunday, as mentioned, the suspension of the strike. In the message he distributed, he stated that although the negotiations between the teachers' organization and the Ministry of Finance are not proceeding to his satisfaction, he decided to suspend the strike and continue the struggle in other ways. In addition, Erez announced that The sanctions are returned to the agenda, as mentioned, so that no grades will be given and no activity will take place outside the school. Apparently, it seemed that the parents and students should be satisfied that the school year opens in high schools after the delays they experienced, but in practice, the national leadership of the parents and the national student and youth council protested the manner. Where this is done, according to them, it is unreasonable to inform the students at 23:30 p.m. of their return to school the next morning, and to expect them to show up at 8:00 a.m. for the first day of school.
Lack of trust in the education system
Beyond that, the Municipal Youth Council in Haifa, as part of the national struggle, announced that it was unacceptable for the teachers to return the sanctions, and therefore announced the closure of the high schools in the city.
The chairman of the Haifa Municipal Youth Council, Yuval Degani, who is in the 11th grade at the Leo Buck School, explained the reason why the council called on the students not to come to school: "We are currently two years after sanctions by the teachers' organization, meaning that the high school students have not gone out for two years for trips and did not receive their grades, this caused distrust and instability in the education system.
When the school year did not start, we once again realized that we were the ones affected by this strike, but at least we expected that there would be a salary agreement and we would return to studies without sanctions. On Sunday night, at an unlikely hour, the teachers' organization announced the end of the strike, not with a long-term solution, but with a return to the sanctions.
From this, it was clear to us that the school as it has been seen in the last two years, when the instability in the country is added to it in addition to the sanctions, is hurting us on a social, academic and mental level. This is not how learning or interaction is supposed to look, and hence the call for a strike.
We respect our teachers very much and there is no doubt that they deserve better conditions. My claim is not against my teachers. The problem is that they don't reach an agreement and a long-term solution and along the way they hurt us. They continue the sanctions and the uncertainty regarding the state of the system in the field, and we are also informed during the night that there will be classes the next morning and everyone is expected to come."
"It's really important to remember the situation of the youth today," says Dagani, "Last year we didn't study in a reasonable way because of the war. Two weeks ago we didn't know if the school year would start because of the threats from the north. My expectation is that they will control the internal things, which can be controlled, and that it will not be about the backs of the students".
The informal system gives us hope
"Within all this place, what remains stable is the informal education and there was a lot of work by us as a youth council together with the youth department in the municipality to find frameworks and give the youth a reason to get up in the morning. I do see hope here in the system. I haven't completely given up yet, I believe There are people who will return the system to a better place, but that's why the sanctions should be ended."
The parents' leadership is tainted with politics. There are leftists out there who want chaos and suffering for the citizens of the country. Don't listen to them, go to school as usual. The leftists have taken over the parents' scholarships. They are collaborating with Ran Erez to make the students and parents angry at the country.