by Andreas Kokkinos
The beginning of the school year in Larnaca did not get off to a good start this morning. According to reports, the Headmaster of Larnaca High School sent 50 students home, without so much as a "good morning", due to their haircuts.
Speaking to Kathimerini, the President of the Pancyprian Confederation of Parents of Secondary Education, Mr. Charalambos Dionysiou, said that the Headmaster of the school allegedly sent home around 50 students on their first day back in the classrooms whose hairstyle was considered not in line with school regulations.
Since details of the incident have yet to be confirmed Mr. Dionysiou initially said that if indeed the students' haircut was inappropriate, the parents should be deemed fully responsible since the framework of the regulations is clear. On the contrary, however, he believes that based on the instructions from the General Directorate of Secondary Education, the students should have been given a fair warning and a chance to resolve the issue. Instead, the headmaster, it is claimed, was too extreme in his actions by sending home a large number of students, angering the parents who were called to pick them up.
The matter is even more controversial since this same headmaster reportedly withheld the diplomas of 6 students during the graduation ceremony last year due to the same issue - their haircuts. As reported to us, the Pancyprian Confederation of Parents of Secondary Education has requested photographic evidence of each of the students sent home in order to determine whether the headmaster's reaction was excessive or if they were indeed justifiable.
UPDATE:
When asked to confirm whether the incident had actually happened, the Minister of Education, Prodromos Prodromou, said that it was untrue, saying that no one was expelled and only recommendations had been made. He added that the school's regulations must be implemented by the school's administration and is not a matter for consultation, referring to a small group of parents in this particular school that creates issues. The Minister also stated that according to a letter from the school's Parents Association, the reported incident wherein the diplomas of 6 graduates were withheld never happened.
[This article was translated from its Greek original]
