Regional Adaptation of the Education System in Réunion: Pleas for Change to Retain Local Teachers

While vacancies exist on the island, and the remoteness in France weighs on transferred teachers and their families, Huguette Bello, President of the Region, as well as two deputies from Nupes, pleaded yesterday, for regional adaptation of the system. “We can no longer continue like this. National Education must take into account the specificities of Reunion. We are no longer in the time of BUMIDOM!”, insists Huguette Bello, recalling that this public body sent Ultramarines to France in the 1960s, when Michel Debré was Prime Minister. This is the “brain drain”, in other words “brain extraction”denounces the President of the Region: “We are taking away our teachers who know the specificities of Reunion to replace them with teachers from France, often at the end of their careers.” Many of whom, whatever the President of the Region says, are Creoles who have accumulated enough points to obtain their transfer to the island.

REGIONAL ADAPTATION OF THE SYSTEM

For Marine Quaak, a secondary school teacher, the situation is critical. After a career in social services, the mother of the family passed her CAPES in medico-social technical sciences. “I was transferred to Loiret to work in a 100 km zone. I moved last year for my internship year. I made the choice to change careers to get better, without thinking that Education national was going to send me as farshe explains, distraught. I sold my house, and my husband was forced to give up his job to follow me. My children didn’t want to be away from their grandparents, but National Education forced us to. I asked to be transferred to Reunion, but all my appeals were refused. I was told that I shouldn’t take my family with me. This is what made me lose points for the center of material and moral interests (CIMM).”
As for elected officials, they are once again calling for better visibility of vacant positions on the island and “stand firm” the visit of the new Minister of National Education, Gabriel Attal, announced on the island for the start of the school year.
Annaelle Dorressamy

—Marie-Laure Collet, trainee teacher in applied arts
“At the start of the school year, I was transferred to the Paris Academy for my internship year. As I am on shared custody, I have to leave my three children here, including my 21-month-old baby. It’s really hard to have to leave the island. I don’t have any family there, I know it’s going to be difficult. Even though I knew it was a national competition, I didn’t think they were going to send me this far. I Already starting to get depressed.”

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