Education Day marked with events, protests

TIRANA, March 8 – Albania marks March 7 every year as the country’s National Education Day. It celebrated primarily by students and educators.
The day marks the opening of the first Albanian language school in the southeastern city of Korca, and it is dedicated to those who worked with determination to develop Albanian education throughout the country’s turbulent history. National Education Day was commemorated with a series of activities in Korca, where high state officials attend. In Tirana, a civic association honored Ali Kukaleshi, a cleric who helped promote literacy in central Albania.
There were also groups of students protesting in front of the education ministry demanding increased quality of studies and the fight against corruption. The group of students protested seeking the protection of the Albanian language, and creating conditions for the return of Albanian scholars from other countries.
The Speak Albanian Organization urged a more cautious policy of hiring and dismissal of teachers from public schools and strengthening controls on private schools.