Guidance teachers to combat drug use, peer bullying in schools

ANKARA

In line with the effort to prevent drug abuse and peer bullying in schools, the Education Ministry will prioritize the appointment of guidance teachers in 2023.

“We will plan the appointments in such a way that there is at least one guidance teacher in every school,” Minister Mahmut Özer said at the Holistic School Approach in Preventing Peer Bullying workshop held in the capital Ankara.

While reiterating the efforts launched recently with the Interior Ministry for combatting drug addiction, Özer said their goal is to reach 19 million students, teachers and 5 million parents by the end of February to raise awareness about addiction and provide training on preventive and supportive mechanisms.

“These studies bring along the need for guidance teachers,” he explained.

Though media visibility about peer bullying has started to increase recently, it does not mean that there is widespread peer bullying in the country’s schools, he suggested.

“We made a change in the secondary education regulation that included peer bullying among disciplinary punishments for the first time. Now, the General Directorate of Special Education and Guidance Services works in a multidimensional way with mechanisms that will eliminate the problem through our guidance teachers,” he added.

‘No guidance teachers in 25,000 schools’

Around 36,500 psychological counselors and guidance teachers work in the country’s schools, informed Mesut Yıldırım, the head of the Turkish Psychological Counseling and Guidance Association.

“Currently, there are no guidance teachers in around 20,000 to 25,000 schools,” he said.

According to the current regulation in preschools and secondary and high schools, a guidance teacher is appointed if there are 150 students in total, Yıldırım noted, adding that the second guidance teacher is assigned for 500 and its multiples. “In primary schools, a counselor is appointed if there are 300 students in a school.”

Meanwhile, teachers from all over Türkiye rallied on Jan. 23 in Ankara’s Ulus district, demanding to be appointed by the ministry “with a fair distribution between branches” according to Public Personnel Selection Exam (KPSS) scores.

“We do not want the vacancies in schools to be filled with paid teachers,” they said.