| About 12,000 teachers in the Altai region kicked
off a
nationwide campaign Tuesday
for education reform and higher wages, Interfax reported.
Teachers unions in the western Siberian region are collecting
signatures through
Saturday for a petition to President Vladimir Putin. Other
regions will join the drive,
Interfax said.
The petition states that there have been no changes in
education since Putin became
president two years ago and laments that living standards of
teachers, college
professors and students remain low. The petition also warns
that the limited funds
sunk into education are spent inefficiently and the quality of
secondary and higher
education is declining.
Putin presided over a State Council meeting in August at which
it was declared the
education system would be reformed. Ministers said at the time
that most of the reform
would take four to seven years to implement. Salaries for
teachers were then raised a
notch.
But salaries in some regions are still not paid in a timely
manner.
Alexander Shishlov, head of the State Duma's science and
education committee, said
Tuesday that the government has not done enough since August.
"I share the
concern of the unions and think that measures aimed at the
development of education
must be more dynamic and focused on several priority issues,"
Shishlov, a member of
the liberal Yabloko party, said by telephone.
He said his committee will propose that spending be increased
in the 2003 federal
budget to allow the purchase of new equipment for education
institutions and salary
hikes for college and university professors with degrees.
See also:
the
original at
www.themoscowtimes.com
YABLOKO leader doubts
the accuracy of public opinion poll on introducing censorship
in the media. Press Release,
May 30, 2002
| 