Buenos Aires teachers reject work practices in secondary schools / Argentina News

Teaching unions of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA) rejected the initiative that establishes compulsory labor practices from the 2022 school year for fifth-year students from public and private management establishments, announced today by the head of the Buenos Aires Government, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, warning that “secondary school does not have this purpose.”

“From the Ministry (of Education) they promote precarious work of students and the secondary school does not have this purpose. They should be working on the orientation and inclusion of students in higher education circuits,” said Angélica Graciano, Secretary General of the Union of Education Workers (UTE-Ctera).

Ademys and UTE-Ctera also criticized that they had not had “any meeting or work in this regard” previously.

“We found out from the media,” Graciano said.

María Isabel Grau, press secretary of the Ademys Teaching Association, said that from the union they reject the “attempt of the city government to carry out work practices and internships in secondary schools since 2017 with the implementation of the Secondary School of the Future.”

“By no means do we understand that the priority has to be insertion in the labor market. The entire reform of the Secondary School of the Future aims to help children adapt to a precarious labor market, in which no specific knowledge is required, “he added.

In this sense, he argued that secondary school should aim at enhance “critical thinking and knowledge that contributes to the development of people that can transform society and effectively aspire to access to the University and tertiary institutes “.

Graciano also directed the critics to the financing of this policy.

“Today the education budget is being voted on and no increases are foreseen at the secondary level. This type of practice requires budget increases for the systematization process -considering that it is most likely that this should be done in a counter-turn-, new jobs, the transfer of the students, in addition to the fact that I believe that the students should receive an allowance for the purchase of the necessary material, such as clothes, “he said.

“There is improvisation. They are making an announcement and have nothing planned for the implementation. It is made to produce headlines, “he concluded.

Larreta’s announcement

“Starting next year, students will have compulsory work practices to combine knowing with doing, which will allow them to have the tools to access a first job”, said the head of the Buenos Aires Government, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, when presenting the initiative.

Mandatory internships will govern both public and private school students of the City, who must complete 120 hours of work placement. “With work placements we want each student to have a clearer horizon” about what it intends to do with its future, indicated the PRO leader.

Rodríguez Larreta explained that they will be in “organizations and companies”, although they can also be carried out in the State. “They will be able to choose according to the orientation of the school or the vocation of each student. They will be able to choose practices in the productive sector, in the State, in the cultural sphere, the community, higher education, the academic scientific world,” he said.

“These practices are going to be key for the future, because they combine the knowledge that they build in school with doing the practices”, justified the head of the Buenos Aires government. “We want the boys to trust in themselves, in their potential, but above all in the country, because the future of the country is the boys,” he added.

For its part, the Minister of Education of the City, Soledad Acuña, He indicated that there will also be 30 hours of training and education on financial education that all students will receive. “These 150 total hours will be developed in the mandatory time taken and will also be evaluated”, he stated.

Measurement details

The internships will have a duration of 120 lecture hours that will be distributed throughout the year. Before starting the experience, students will have an introductory instance to work with the teaching team on their journey during the last year of high school.

“They will allow students to develop new capacities, make decisions with autonomy, and stimulate their creativity, critical thinking and potential for teamwork. New technologies are constantly transforming the job market and require increasing knowledge to achieve professional success. In this context, the incorporation of work practices will allow the boys to graduate mastering new skills that will help them to insert themselves better and faster both in the world of work and in higher education “, they maintained in the ministry led by Soledad Acuña.

“These practices are going to be key for the future”, justified the Buenosairean head of Government

The organizations that participate in these activities or are interested in doing it with public school students must be part of the “registration system for entities and human persons committed to education” and comply with all the established requirements. The privately managed colleges, meanwhile, must establish the corresponding agreements.

29,400 5th year high school students in 442 schools will have internships

• State management: 11,250 students in 116 schools.
• Private management: 18,150 students in 326 schools.

Implementation of educational practices

Students will be able to add experiences related to their school orientation in various areas, divided into 4 axes:

• Productive sector (private or public).
• Public policy management sector.
• Cultural / community sphere.
• Field of higher / scientific-academic education.