Radio România Internațional

Tag: Education Ministry

  • August 5, 2024

    August 5, 2024

    LEGISLATION – The Government is this week expected to amend the legislation on sexual abuse, which currently disallows anonymous complaints. Authorities will adopt measures to protect the victims, regardless of the aggressor’s identity. The measures come in response to several reports of sexual harassment in universities. Education Minister Ligia Deca explained the police will quickly register reports of sexual abuse, and the new measures will apply to the entire public sector, including regulations regarding internal inquiries. We recall that, in the last week, a number of former female students presented allegations of sexual harassment against three university professors. The Police have launched a number of investigations. Professor Alfred Bulai of the National School of Political Science and Public Administration (SNSPA) was sacked from the position of chair of the Sociology Department, while Dorin Ștefan Adam from the University of Architecture in Bucharest and Marius Pieleanu of SNSPA have resigned.

     

     

    MIDDLE EAST – The situation remains tense in the Middle East amidst fears regarding a possible attack on Israel from Iran and its associated militias, in particular Hezbollah. Teheran and its allies might thus retaliate after the killing of Hamas leader, Ismail Hanniah, and of Hezbollah’s military commander, Fuad Shukr. To prevent the situation from escalating, the United States is building up its armed forces in the region, while president Joe Biden today has called a security meeting to assess the developments. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has reiterated US support for Israel’s security and “right to defend itself against threats from Iran, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Houthi rebels and other Iranian-backed terrorist groups”. In turn, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday had talks with Iraq’s Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, underlining “the importance that all parties should take “steps to calm regional tensions, avoid further escalation and advance stability”. Military experts have warned that Iran and its forces in Iraq, Syria and Yemen might also attack US military bases in the Middle East, in addition to objectives on Israel’s territory.

     

     

    WARNING – The Romanian Foreign Ministry advises Romanian citizens to immediately leave Lebanon while flights are still available amidst the growing risk of a security escalation in the Middle East. Romanians might find it impossible to leave as the security climate is rapidly deteriorating, impacting commercial flights and transport routes. The Ministry also advises Romanian citizens in Lebanon to register with the Romanian Embassy in Beirut.

     

     

    US ELECTION – Vice-president Kamala Harris has cut into Donald Trump’s lead in the US presidential race. According to a poll published on Sunday, the two candidates are now tied in what now looks like a very close race for the White House. 50% of voters would now vote for Harris, compared to 49% who would favor Trump, a slight lead Joe Biden didn’t have before withdrawing from the race. The former prosecutor and California Senator now enjoys the Democrats’ support after securing the endorsement of over half of her party’s delegates. Harris has also been able to raise over 310 mln USD for her election campaign, which is double the amount raised by her Republican contender. The US presidential election is slated for November 5.

     

     

    OLYMPICS – Romanian athletes on Monday are competing in athletics, artistic gymnastics, wrestling, water polo, table tennis and sailing.  Romania currently ranks 12th in the medal standings, with seven gold, three silver and one bronze. The gold medals were grabbed by David Popovici in the 200m freestyle race, Andrei Cornea and Marian Enache in the men’s pair and the women’s eight crew in rowing. The silver medals were won by Ancuța Bodnar and Simona Radiș in the women’s pair, Ioana Vrînceanu and Roxana Anghel in the women’s double sculls, Gianina van Groningen and Ionela Cozmiuc in the women’s lightweight double sculls, while the bronze medal was scooped by David Popovici in the 100m freestyle race. The authorities are rewarding gold medals with 140 thousand EUR, silver with 100 thousand EUR and bronze with 60 thousand EUR each. (VP)

  • Sexual harassment scandal rocks Romanian academic system

    Sexual harassment scandal rocks Romanian academic system

    The Education Ministry has called for verifications at the level of higher education institutions regarding the cases that involved elements of sexual harassment (or similar actions) following recent information circulated in the media. The measures were announced after several female students recently claimed they were sexually abused by their teachers. So far, three names are intensively circulated in the media and on social networks. Sociologist Alfred Bulai denies the allegations, although he has filed his application for retirement. The National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (SNSPA) suspended Bulai from his position as chair of the Department of Sociology and removed him from any teaching positions pending an internal investigation by the university’s Ethics Commission. Meanwhile, at least 10 people sent emails to the Prosecutor’s Office about his behavior, after prosecutors called on citizens to contact the authorities with any information about the case. The Prosecutor’s Office is expected to follow up on these notifications. A criminal investigation has already been launched in the case of Alfred Bulai, who faces possible charges of abuse of office for sexual purposes.

     

     

    Professor Ştefan Adam from the University of Architecture in Bucharest submitted a request of self-suspension, after several female students accused him of sending them lewd messages and pictures of him naked. The architect claims this is his private life which should not affect the image of the faculty. The third professor facing sexual harassment allegations is Marius Pieleanu, also from SNSPA, who is accused of sexual harassment even by the former Minister of Justice, Ana Birchall, but the Prosecutor’s Office claims it has received no notification in this regard. The sociologist continued to feature on TV shows and there was no journalistic investigation in this case that happened 16 years ago, Ana Birchall wrote on a social network.

     

     

     

    “Sexual harassment is a scourge, with disastrous consequences for both the victims and the professional climate in any organization. When the perpetrators of such acts also hold positions that entail trust and authority, such as that of a teacher, the impact is even more devastating. I appreciate the courage of all those who have stepped forward and told the truth, and I encourage everyone who has been a victim of abuse of any kind to come forward. I ask that any deviation from the norms of ethics and integrity be harshly sanctioned, ensuring the protection of victims and post-traumatic assistance”, the Education Minister, Ligia Deca, said. The representatives of the Education Ministry emphasize that sexual harassment, along with any form of harassment, is considered a deviation from the ethical and deontological norms regarding respect for the human being and dignity, considering the fact that they destroy the dignity of the direct beneficiaries of the right to education and the prestige of the trade, in line with the provisions of the Higher Education Law of 2023. Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu expressed confidence that “the necessary measures will be taken in line with legal provisions”. (VP)

  • Literacy and illiteracy in Romanian schools

    Literacy and illiteracy in Romanian schools

    Functional illiteracy has become a
    widespread topic in Romania in recent years. At first, the existence of this
    global phenomenon was regarded with skepticism in our country, although international
    PISA, PILS and TIMSS testing indicated that as much as 42% of Romanian pupils
    under 15 could not read, had difficulty understanding written texts and also
    had major shortcomings in assimilating scientific information. Gradually, the
    public and government institutions started growing more aware of functional
    illiteracy. Today, after two years of online schooling, which has amplified
    educational gaps, the problem can no longer be avoided. A recent study
    conducted by the BRIO digital testing platform was analyzed by the Education
    Ministry in order to streamline testing mechanisms across public schools. The
    report on literacy confirmed that over 40% of pupils had trouble assimilating
    various information and skills taught in schools. The pupils were tested online
    by means of 40,000 free tests provided by BRIO. University lecturer Dragoș Iliescu, the creator of this platform
    and an expert in psychology and teaching, explains how pupils were tested.


    They were each rated with a score from
    0 to 100. Then we broke down the level of literacy in several categories: the
    completely illiterate level from 0 to 20, followed by the minimum literacy
    level and an acceptable literacy level. We picked a sample population of 31
    thousand pupils that would give us a fair share of representation for the final
    results. The final score was 26.9 points. On a scale from 0 to 100, this puts
    the pupils a little above the completely illiterate threshold.


    This means that, on average, pupils’
    cognitive abilities are on a fine line between literacy and illiteracy. Exactly
    how this score is translated into school performance we found out from Dragoș Iliescu.


    Right now we’re only looking at that
    percentage of the population that is rated in the functional illiteracy area,
    which stands at 42% in our study. 47% is the share of those who are in-between functional
    and dysfunctional. Only 11% are highly functional illiterates. This is a
    worrying figure, because it shows we have a big percentage below this mark.
    Besides, the number of people who are rated as dysfunctional illiterates does
    not differ radically from one age category to the next: 37% at the age of six
    compared to 41% in 14-year-olds.


    Another fact that confirms the findings
    of the literacy report is the gap between boys and girls, the former being much
    better trained than the latter in the same age bracket. The only element that
    has not been fully confirmed is the link between the degree of social and
    economic development of a region and its degree of functional illiteracy.


    I discovered something unexpected,
    namely that regions with high poverty rates didn’t have a high degree of
    illiteracy, correlated with their economic performance, contrary to my
    expectations. Interestingly enough, our data did not confirm this, which makes
    it a social problem. Another thing which is unreasonable is to expect the
    ministry to solve this problem. People in Romania always think ‘this isn’t my
    problem, it’s the education. Whoever’s in charge of education, namely the
    ministry, should deal with it’. It’s exactly what’s wrong about the way parents
    approach school, which has been confirmed by many surveys. As a parent, it’s
    unreasonable to expect the school to solve your kid’s drawbacks and problems.
    This will never happen. It’s time civil society stepped up.


    To this end, we should better understand
    the root causes behind this phenomenon. Luminița Costache from UNICEF Romania
    describes it as learning
    poverty.


    More often than not, when we speak
    about the right to education, we tend to think more about access and often
    overlook participation or the quality of education. These three elements are
    intertwined – you can’t have access to education without a proper participation
    and a high quality of the education process. This leads to the kind of results
    the report points to. I would like to introduce a term that has been circulated
    a lot globally, and which is relatively unknown in Romania – learning
    poverty. It’s an indicator measuring
    illiteracy in children under 10. Romania doesn’t fare well in this respect.
    Over 20% of children in Romania suffer from learning poverty. 7% of children of
    primary school level are not enrolled in the system. Why is learning poverty so
    important? We often speak about poverty, and studies reveal that financial
    poverty affects children in Romania to a large extent. A recent report drafted
    by UNICEF, UNESCO and the World Bank shows the lifelong economic impact on an
    individual affected by learning poverty. Basically, this drawback extends to
    the entire lifespan of the person’s adult life, and worse, it can be passed on
    to future generations. While reports often speak about education as the most
    sustainable road to prosperity, they should also say it’s the most sustainable
    way out of poverty. Eliminating learning poverty leads to financial
    prosperity.


    The report on literacy in Romania was
    drafted jointly with the Education Ministry, meaning the phenomenon has started
    to sink in at institutional level as well. Countermeasures are expected to
    emerge starting next year, by changing the way pupils are tested, which is
    hopefully but the first stage in a much broader process. (VP)

  • When will the school year resume?

    When will the school year resume?

    Interim
    Education Minister, Sorin Cîmpeanu, said pupils in Romania will resume classes starting
    November 8, after the two-week mini-holiday imposed due to the pandemic.
    However, on Friday, jointly with health authorities, the Ministry will decide
    whether pupils will return to school physically or if classes will move online.
    Also at the end of this week, the Ministry will make other announcements
    regarding teaching activities, such as the reduction of the number of final exams
    and changes in the grading system. Minister Sorin Cîmpeanu said that a document
    will be made public in this respect and gave more details:




    Pupils in the
    5th, 6th and 7th grades will sit final exams
    in math and Romanian. 8th-grade pupils had three finals before, and
    now they will have only two. High-school pupils had four finals, with the exception
    of technological schools, and by order of the Education Ministry they will only
    sit three final exams.


    The interim minister
    said the exams can be taken starting December 6, and their share in the final grade
    will be 25%. All exams will be taken with physical attendance.


    Pupils who
    won’t be able to sit the exams physically for reasons beyond their control, and
    of course here we refer to cases of infection or quarantine, will be able to
    take the exams upon their return to school, even in the second semester.


    Minister Sorin
    Cîmpeanu said that the anti-COVID-19 vaccination rate among pupils has gone up
    of late. According to official data, the vaccination rate has exceeded 25% of
    the total number of pupils over the age of 12. Right now, 80 thousand pupils
    aged 12-15 and some 223 thousand pupils over the age of 16 have taken the jab. Minister
    Cîmpeanu called on every county school inspector and individual schooling unit to publish all vaccination-related data on their websites.


    All county
    school inspectorates have published the vaccination rate at local level, and in
    some cases this exceeds 90%. Additionally, each school will publish on its
    website the level of vaccination amongst the teaching staff, with the full
    observance of personal data legislation. By virtue of example, I’ve also
    published the rate of vaccination among the employees of the Education Ministry,
    which I must admit is below expectations, 66%.


    Minister Sorin
    Cîmpeanu also said the forced holiday will be rescheduled in early January. (VP)







  • November 13, 2018

    November 13, 2018

    STRASBOURG – The European Parliament is today voting upon a resolution on the observance of the rule of law in Romania. According to Radio Romanias correspondent in Strasbourg, the resolution brings together the standpoints of the EP following last months debate, also attended by Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă, whose focal point of the talks was the reform of the judiciary and the protests in Romania against the changes to the justice laws. The text of the resolution calls on the Romanian Parliament and Government to counteract any measures which might decriminalise corruption in office, to fully implement the recommendations of the EC, GRECO and the Venice Commission and to refrain from making any reform which might put in jeopardy the observance of the rule of law, including the independence of the judiciary. The resolution also notes reasons of concern on political restrictions of mass media liberties and condemns what its calls the violent and disproportionate intervention of the gendarmes and of the police in the August 10 protest of the diaspora, against the government made up of the Social Democratic Party –the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats.



    CVM – The European Commission is today making public a new CVM report on Romania. The document makes an X-ray analysis of the justice system and of the fight against corruption, reviewing the measures that have been taken in these domains. According to European sources, in the current document, the EC calls on Bucharest to observe the recommendations made by the Venice Commission on the recent changes brought to the justice laws and the criminal codes. The Venice Commission considers that the two codes have been adopted through a fast and non-transparent legislative process. As regards the Criminal Code, the most important ascertainment is that it decriminalises facts related to THE abuse of office, which makes almost impossible the sentencing of those guilty. Also in the new CVM report, the European Commission calls for the revision of the instruments of the fight against corruption and wants to re-launch the process of nominating the chief of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, by promoting prosecutors with a rich experience in the fight against corruption. It is also recommended that the opinion of the Superior Council of Magistracy in the procedure to remove from office and nominate chief prosecutors to be mandatory and not consultative, as is now. In brief, the European Commission wants the CVM to be lifted by the end of its mandate. The CVM is a process of regulated verification of the progress that Romania and neighbouring Bulgaria are making in reforming the judiciary and fighting corruption. The mechanism was instated when the two countries joined the EU, on January 1, 2007.



    NOMINATIONS – Ecaterina Andronescu has today been nominated by the National Standing Bureau of the Social Democratic Party, the senior party in the ruling coalition in Romania, for the position of education minister. The seat has been vacant since September, after Valentin Popa tendered his resignation. Also, state secretary with the Romanian Foreign Ministry, George Ciamba, was designated to replace Victor Negrescu as minister delegate for European Affairs. Negrescu stepped down at end of last week. Romania will take over on January 1, the presidency of the EU Council and Victor Negrescu had responsibilities relating to the whole project, involving preparations. PM Viorica Dăncilă has today told a press conference that in spite of the newly created situation after the resignation tendered by Negrescu, Bucharest is ready to hold the half-yearly rotating presidency of the EU Council. Yesterday, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, voiced concern about the latest developments at the level of the government, which might affect, in his opinion, Romanias capacity to take over the presidency of the EU Council.

    POVERTY – The
    lowest decrease in the number of people at risk of poverty as a result of unemployment
    benefits from the state or dwelling aid was registered last year in Greece (16%)
    and Romania (17%), data released by Eurostat on Tuesday show. In nine member states
    the decrease rate was below 25%, whereas the European average stood at some 32%. According to the latest report made
    public by Eurostat last month, over a third (35.7%) of Romania’s population was
    at risk of poverty and social exclusion in 2017, a worse situation in the EU being
    registered only in Bulgaria, where 38.9% of the population runs this risk.

    EBRD – Transparency
    in drafting government policies in the 38 countries where the European Bank for
    Reconstruction and Development is activating has not improved since the start of the decade, with some
    exceptions, like Kazakhstan, Romania and Ukraine, the annual transition report
    issued by that financial institution shows. The document underlines the progress made by
    countries in six key domains, from competitiveness and resilience, to the way
    they are governed. According to the
    latest forecast issued this month by EBRD, Romania’s economy will register a
    growth rate of 4.2% in 2018, to go down to 3.6% next year. EBRD is one of the major
    institutional investors in Romania. The
    bank has invested so far some 8 billion Euros in the country, in over 400
    projects. In 2017 alone, EBRD invested some 550 million Euros in Romania. Over
    500 million have been invested in the private sector, thus reaching the highest
    level of investment in the past seven years.


    GAUDEAMUS- The 25 edition of the Gaudeamus International Fair, a landmark of the book market in Romania, an event organised by Radio Romania opens its doors on Wednesday. Gaudeamus 2018 will unfold under the auspices of a triple anniversary: the Great Union Centennial, 9 decades since the first broadcast was aired by Radio Romania, one of the oldest radio stations in Europe and the 25th edition of the Gaudeamus Fair.

  • The Education Minister has resigned

    The Education Minister has resigned


    The education portfolio in the cabinet
    made up of the Social Democratic Party-the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats is
    vacant, after the relevant minister Valentin Popa stepped down on Thursday.
    Actually, his name had already been mentioned for a prospective government
    reshuffle, likely to be made next month. An engineer, professor, rector of
    Suceava University in the north-east, Popa was sworn in at the start of the
    year, when a cabinet was formed by his Social-Democrat colleague, Viorica
    Dăncilă. He is the second minister to resign, after research minister Nicolae
    Burnete discretely made public his decision to step down on August 31, without
    however detailing the reasons behind his decision.

    The press has however
    speculated that Burnete was allegedly discontented about the insufficient funds
    allotted to his domain and that he was among those envisaged for a possible
    reshuffle. In exchange, Popa’s resignation has stirred rumours. In
    Transylvania, central Romania, which is home to the largest Hungarian community
    in Romania, of up to 1.2 million people, ethnic Hungarian teachers had gone on
    a token strike. They had made public their decision to go ahead with their
    protest until the suspension of a government decision stipulating that Romanian
    language course in primary schools with tuition in Hungarian be given by
    teachers of Romanian. The leader of the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians
    in Romania, UDMR, Kelemen Hunor, has put the issue on UDMR’s agenda and called
    for Popa’s resignation. Until then, he has warned, the parliamentary
    cooperation protocol between the Union and the majority made up of the Social Democratic
    Party-the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats remains suspended.

    The Romanian
    language and Romania do not make the object of negotiations, Popa responded,
    saying that he stepped down precisely because he does not agree with UDMR’s
    request to change the government decision. In exchange, Kelemen Hunor says that
    tendering his resignation was the right decision, adding that Popa should
    assume responsibility for the consequences produced by the measures he had
    taken and which created confusion among tens of thousands of pupils, teachers
    and parents.

    In turn, the president of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, Călin
    Popescu-Tăriceanu, has said he does not know the reasons behind the resignation
    and added however that the UDMR leader had already told him about his
    discontent over the teaching of the Romanian language in classes with tuition
    in the Hungarian language. The National Liberal Party, in opposition, claims
    the minister’s resignation is not an act of honour, but one showing
    incompetence and weakness and that his successor will take over a difficult mission.
    Analysts believe the reasons behind Popa’s resignation are purely mathematical.

    Over the past 20 years, thanks to its 6%
    presence in the Romanian Parliament, UDMR has frequently been included in the
    coalition cabinets in Bucharest, be they of right or left wing orientation. And
    when it is not in power, the Union usually votes alongside the Power. Against
    this backdrop, for the Social-Democratic leader of the coalition, Liviu
    Dragnea, the ethnic Hungarian MPs’ votes might become vital, at a time when
    more and more people are leaving the party ranks. Therefore, pundits say it is
    not by chance that Popa tendered his resignation soon after having a private
    talk with Dragnea.

    (Translated by D. Vijeu)