The new school year is set to begin with “very good omens”, Education Minister Athena Michaelidou said on Tuesday.

Ahead of schools opening early September, she said that 98 per cent of the teaching staff positions have already been filled.

Asked about the teachers’ evaluation, Michaelidou said next week she will have further meetings with teaching unions so that based on the timetable given by the Parliament, an updated bill will come in September.

“Here it is important for all of us to see the issue in its true dimensions. It is very important, if we want a change in the education system, we should all make concessions. The demands here are not trade unions, they are substantial, educational, pedagogical, they concern the whole society. That’s why we want a change in the evaluation system,” she explained.

In terms of schools themselves, she said 17 major construction projects are set to get underway in addition to the 22 that have already started.