“How difficult is your job?”
That was the question posed to Wales' new education minister by one of the students he met during a visit to a primary school in Cardiff.
“To be honest, it's very difficult for me because I'm new,” Lynn Neagle answered nonchalantly.
This is Mr Neagle's first ministerial post, and he is one of only four politicians left in the Senedd since the first election 25 years ago.
She will set out her vision for education in Wales on Tuesday, and one of her top priorities will be tackling absenteeism and bad behavior in Welsh schools.
Teachers face 'abuse'
The proportion of secondary school students missing 10% of classes has soared since the coronavirus outbreak, more than doubling to 40% between 2018-19 and 2022-23.
Unions say verbal and physical abuse of staff is also becoming more common.
Neil Butler, Welsh director of education union NASUWT, said: “NASUWT is now more involved than ever in disputes with schools in Wales over employers' failure to protect members, mainly from abusive language.'' There is,” he said. But sometimes there is also physical assault. ”
The union is calling on the Welsh Government to convene a summit to discuss the issue.
Butler said abuse of classroom staff is “normal and almost part of the culture.”
Mr Neagle told Senedd MPs on Wednesday that the Welsh Government was working on an “action toolkit”.
Educational achievements
Another key challenge for Mr Neagle is raising standards after Wales recorded the worst score in the latest internationally recognized Pisa Test.
The first post-Covid results also show Wales falling further behind the rest of the UK in reading, maths and science.
Dr Luke Sibieta, from the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said: “Without question, the Welsh Education Secretary has been focused on improving educational outcomes over the past 25 years.
“The problem is that we are not seeing improvements in outcomes and we are also seeing rising inequality.
“So instead of assuming that the next policy is going to be the next policy, we need to pause and think about what is the best way to actually change the direction of policy and actually improve standards. I think you need to talk to your teacher about it. That's the next big thing.”
Will school holidays change?
One of the policies introduced by Lynne Neagle's predecessor, Jeremy Miles, was to shorten summer vacation and reform the school year.
It will be up to Mr. Neagle to decide whether to go ahead with the controversial plan.
Dr Sibieta said the proposals were “unlikely to have a significant impact on inequalities or outcomes” and called on the Welsh Government to focus on helping schools get used to the new curriculum.
Dr Gareth Evans, from Trinity St David's, University of Wales, said: 'There is a general feeling within the system that there is so much going on that we need to consider what we should continue to do and what we should stop doing. “It's there,” he said.
“New ministers often bring an element of disruption, but I think this is a good opportunity to take another look at what we are doing,” he said.
Ms Neagle told Wales Online that grade reform was “not a fait accompli” and said she was listening to the Government's response to the consultation.
“Many schools are struggling financially.”
Many in the industry have expressed concern about the financial pressures schools are facing.
“Many schools are struggling and have been forced to make cuts at a time when they need more professionals,” Plaid Cymr education spokesperson Hered Fichan said.
“The cuts are not sustainable.
“Last year, a survey released by trade unions showed that 75% of teachers were considering leaving.
“If this isn’t a crisis, what is?”
Ms Neagle told the Senedd she recognized the “very difficult circumstances” but said the Government was “prioritizing” funding for schools.
University jobs threatened
Funding higher education is also a challenge, with many Welsh universities expressing concerns about their financial situation.
It has also been warned that up to 200 jobs could be created at Aberystwyth University.
Professor Paul Boyle, Vice-Chancellor of Swansea University and Chair of Universities Wales, said: “We fully understand that the financial situation for our department is quite challenging at the moment, but so are many other departments.” Ta.
“This is probably the most pressing moment I have seen in higher education in Wales and across the UK.”
He explained that another concern for Welsh universities was the “widening” gap between the number of Welsh students applying to university and the rest of the UK.
“If students in Wales were attending or applying to university at the same rate as in other parts of the UK, we would expect around 5,000 more students to come forward.”
The Welsh Government said it was aware of the “financial pressures on higher education institutions”.