The national program “No free hours” and a national program for financing the Bulgarian schools abroad will be approved by the Council of ministers in 15 days. This was announced by the minister of education and science Daniel Valchev.

The national program “No free hours” will provide financing for the first day of absence of the teacher. Up to now, these money were at the school’s expense. The program will provide a special “bank” of cadres in each regional inspectorate of education to substitute absent teachers. According to minister Valchev, the large teacher potential of pensioned cadres can be realized.

The financing of the program is 4 million leva. The program will involve a tighter control system for the teacher substitution in schools. For now, the biggest percentage of substitute teachers is in the region of Shumen, and smallest – in the region of Smolyan. The total number of free hours per year are 192 196, or an average of half a day at school for each day of December per student.

The law will penalize the principals of each school that goes over the national average number of free hours. Minister Valchev was resolute that if a teacher is absent, he must be substituted by a colleague, the vice-principal or the principal himself.

The second new program will provide 40 lv. per lecture of each teacher at a Bulgarian school abroad. The program’s financing is 5 million leva.