SAN MARINO – The Middle School Teachers’ Board intervenes on the controversies linked to the participation of students in SportInFiera, reiterating the value of teaching autonomy and claiming the legitimacy of the decision to involve only the first classes.
In an open letter, the teachers specify that the choice was the result of a democratic discussion within the College and was communicated to the family representatives during the Institute Council on 8 June and to the CONS with a letter from the Management on 12 June.
According to the Board, the criticisms directed at the decision have called into question the competences of the collegiate body, whose professional autonomy is protected by article 21 of Law 21/1998. The teachers also express bitterness at the climate of tension which, in their opinion, has also been created following the interventions of public institutions and bodies.
The letter calls for respect for the opinions of others and the need to maintain discussions within the limits of respect for people and their respective roles. The teachers also recall the previous appeal against the improper use of social media and online hatred, underlining the risk that some media reconstructions transmit messages to students that are contrary to the educational principles of the school.
The Board also denounces a progressive reduction in the decision-making margins of teachers, who are increasingly called upon, as reported in the letter, to implement projects already defined by bodies and institutions, without sufficient possibility to evaluate their contents, purposes and applicability to individual classes.
For teachers, professional autonomy does not represent a category privilege, but a necessary condition to fully exercise educational and teaching responsibility. Hence the request to recognize and respect the decision-making prerogatives of the Board, even when its choices arouse criticism or dissent.
