Teachers will be public authority: assaulting them will have more serious consequences

PalmaThe Department of Education is preparing a new decree with which it intends to significantly reinforce the authority of teachers and educational teams of educational centers. The regulatory text, which is beginning to be designed, will include the institutional recognition of teaching staff as public authority, a measure that the Government considers key to improving coexistence in schools. A public official with public authority is an employee who, by reason of their position, legally possesses recognized power of decision, command, or their own jurisdiction. This status grants superior legal protection to their actions and implies greater responsibility before the law.

This means that their word has preferential evidentiary validity before the courts or in administrative proceedings. Attacking, disobeying, threatening, or assaulting a public authority or official in the exercise of their functions is punished with much harsher penalties than if it were an ordinary citizen. And all this in a context where assaults on teachers are multiplying relentlessly.

The Minister of Education, Antoni Vera, has transferred this initiative to the directors of Secondary Education Institutes (IES), Adult Education Centers (CEPA), Integrated Vocational Training Centers (CIFP) and artistic education centers in Mallorca, in a coordination meeting with the educational community.

According to the Ministry, the future decree will update the current regulations – in force since 2010 – that govern the rights and duties of students and the rules of coexistence in centers supported by public funds. The objective is to adapt the legal framework to the current needs of the educational system and to reinforce both respect for teaching work and safety and a good school climate.

The new text also aims to better specify the rights and obligations of families and students, as well as to establish more efficient tools for managing conflicts and discipline within the centers. The recognition of teachers as public authority is considered “fundamental” to guarantee an environment of trust and respect. A working group will be created for the elaboration of the decree with experts and representatives of the educational community, with the aim of incorporating different points of view into the regulatory process.

Closing of the current course, and the horizon for the next one

During the meeting, Vera also presented other lines of work of the Ministry, such as the upcoming dining hall and food aid for the next academic year and the planned improvements in school transport, which will include new routes to facilitate access for vocational training students to the centers. Changes have been anticipated, such as new orders for vocational training, the development of regulations for the offer and admission of students, and the drafting of new curricular decrees. Initiatives have also been presented such as an excellence program in Baccalaureate, the reinforcement of basic competencies – especially in Mathematics and Reading Comprehension – and measures for emotional well-being and school coexistence.

The Ministry has highlighted the promotion of educational innovation, inclusion, and participation programs, as well as projects related to culture, coeducation, and attention to diversity. Finally, the schedule for the summer teaching positions award process has also been discussed, which will be carried out in stages between the end of June and the end of July to ensure the coverage of all vacancies before the start of the school year. The meeting is part of a series of meetings that will continue this week with directors of centers in Menorca and Ibiza, with the aim of strengthening coordination and planning the next academic year with all guarantees.