Education Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis reiterated on Friday the ministry’s intention to strictly enforce the ban on mobile phone use in schools. When asked whether it is wrong for teachers to use their phones when students are prohibited from doing so, he responded with a firm “yes.”

He emphasized that “teachers must be protected when they enforce the school regulations, and we will strengthen the legal framework.” He added that the mobile phone ban in schools is in the best interest of the children.

Speaking to ANT1, Pierrakakis stated, “We are investing in technology, but the teacher is the key player in the educational process.”

He also noted that “we have introduced 5,500 psychologists into schools, and we are in the process of addressing the issue.” He acknowledged that there will always be gaps due to circumstances like pregnancy or illness, giving the example of Kythera, where the staffing issue was resolved by 90% within 48 hours.

Pierrakakis also pointed out that “we started the school year with 6,000 more teachers,” and when discussing classroom mergers, he said, “we are investing in public education with 10,000 permanent teacher appointments. If you divide the number of students by the number of teachers, the ratio is 8 to 1, while the European average is 12 to 1. Our unique circumstances lead us to this ratio. We are talking about approximately 1,000 classes out of a total of over 78,000 that needed to be optimized. We must be more effective in solving problems. There have been 38,000 permanent teacher appointments in recent years, something that wasn’t possible during the financial crisis. We want to ensure that our efforts are effective.”

Finally, when asked about the “Marietta Giannakou” program for school renovations, he mentioned that “there will be significant donations from private individuals for the renovation of schools, and I already know of several such donations.”