“I cannot understand how socially teachers have been so undervalued. Teachers, for many years, have participated in demonstrations, understandably, but a teacher is someone respected in society for their knowledge, authority, and being appreciated by generations of students. Someone who participates in demonstrations loses that aura,” argued Fernando Alexandre.
“Teachers need to be where they belong, but for that, they must have the conditions to work,” he observed.
Speaking to over two hundred students at Dr. Joaquim de Carvalho secondary school in Figueira da Foz, Coimbra district, which he attended from 1984 to 1990, the Minister of Education, Science and Innovation stressed he was not criticizing teachers who participated in protests, noting that educators “were very poorly treated in Portugal for too long,” both professionally and socially.
“I am not criticizing teachers who took part in demonstrations; they did so with legitimacy because they did not have the recognition they deserved,” argued Fernando Alexandre in response to Rafael André, an 11th-grade science student aspiring to become a doctor, who asked the minister how the government could make teaching careers more attractive.
“So, Rafael, it starts with socially valuing teachers. A teacher is someone who shapes generations. It’s no coincidence I said this school was a defining moment in my life, and I’ve done many things, but entering Joaquim de Carvalho was a defining moment for me,” emphasized the Minister of Education.
Among the measures the government intends to implement, and which will be subject to negotiations with trade unions – halted by the fall of the previous government and now to be resumed – Fernando Alexandre highlighted the removal of quotas in the 5th and 7th tiers “which specifically prevent career planning” by teachers.
“And, above all, we very much need to enhance [in salary terms] the initial tiers [of the teaching career], which, as in the general public sector, due to competition from the private sector, are relatively low,” expressed the official.
Regarding the shortage of teachers in some regions of the country, the Education Minister mentioned that the government is deploying more teachers to schools; those who were engaged in other activities are returning to fill vacant schedules.
“We had over two thousand teachers who were in city councils, numerous entities, and were needed in schools. The rule we adopted was ‘those needed in schools should return.’ (…) If indeed a person is required in another service, mobility is granted. If not, priority is given to teaching, which was our criterion,” emphasized Alexandre.
He also highlighted a condition for the country: “We will not achieve our goals as a nation if education isn’t stabilized and we aren’t focused on what matters: the quality of education. And this is not possible without motivated teachers, and, for that matter, non-teaching staff,” he declared.
At the end of the session, which included a lesson on financial literacy with the theme “Savings and the ability to imagine the future,” when questioned by Lusa agency about the negotiations, Fernando Alexandre reiterated that the government wants teachers to have “a fairer, more transparent, and valued career,” as agreed with seven unions in the previous government, with potential agreements expected to be finalized by 2026.
