Rodríguez Ramos defends the need to establish a permanent body for the participation of the educational community after the controversy generated by the attempt to suppress the Baccalaureate of Arts for the 2026/2027 academic year by the Ministry of Education of the Government of the Canary Islands.
The spokesperson for the Initiative for La Gomera (IxLG) and island councillor, Aarón Rodríguez Ramos, has announced the registration of a motion with the aim of it being debated in the ordinary plenary session of the Island Council of La Gomera on June 5, 2026 for the creation of an Island School Council, a body of permanent participation that allows improving coordination, dialogue and educational planning on the island.
Rodríguez Ramos recalled that this proposal was already presented by the Initiative for La Gomera (IxLG) in 2024, although a political agreement was not finally reached for its implementation. However, it considers that recent events related to the initial announcement by the Ministry of Education of the Government of the Canary Islands to eliminate the Baccalaureate of Arts in La Gomera for the 2026/2027 academic year - a decision that was later rectified - have further evidenced the need to establish stable institutional mechanisms for educational participation and planning.
"What happened with the Baccalaureate of Arts has made it clear that La Gomera cannot continue reacting to important educational decisions when they have already been practically made. We need permanent structures of participation, coordination and planning that allow us to anticipate problems, defend the real needs of the island and avoid unnecessary uncertainties for students and families," said Rodríguez Ramos.
From the Initiative for La Gomera (IxLG) they emphasize that the right to education constitutes one of the fundamental pillars of the Welfare State and remember that educational legislation has historically recognized the importance of the participation of educational communities through collegiate bodies such as School Councils.
In this sense, Gomera training defends that the future Insular School Council must be configured as a stable space for the representation of the entire Gomera educational community, integrating students, teachers, mothers and fathers, administration and service personnel, town councils and other agents linked to the educational field, with the aim of channeling demands, anticipating needs and improving territorial cohesion in educational matters.
"The educational reality of La Gomera is complex and diverse, with unitary and rural schools, preschool and primary centers, secondary education institutes, vocational training and different territorial realities. Precisely for this reason we need a coordinated island vision that guarantees that all voices are heard," said the spokesperson for the Initiative for La Gomera (IxLG).
Rodríguez Ramos also recalled that the Canarian regional legislation already contemplates mechanisms for social participation in education. The Canary Islands Law on Non-University Education recognizes the importance of promoting democratic culture and institutional co-responsibility, while the Law on School Councils of the Canary Islands establishes the creation of educational participation bodies in different territorial areas.
Likewise, the Initiative for La Gomera (IxLG) focuses on the role of councils as institutions of cooperation and assistance to municipalities, especially taking into account that, almost forty years after the Canarian regulations were approved, the majority of municipalities in La Gomera still do not have fully established Municipal School Councils.
"We want the Council to play an active role in coordination and support. An Island School Council can become a useful tool to channel proposals, debate educational needs, coordinate policies between administrations and reinforce the real participation of those who experience education on the island daily," he added.
The island spokesperson for the Initiative for La Gomera (IxLG) insisted that education must remain outside of improvisations and unilateral decisions, betting on participatory planning that allows designing the educational future of La Gomera “with dialogue, consensus and vision of the island.”
"If the controversy over the Baccalaureate of Arts has shown anything, it is that we cannot depend solely on external decisions without solid dialogue from La Gomera. We must build permanent institutional spaces where students, teachers, families and administrations can actively participate in defining the educational priorities of our island," concluded Rodríguez Ramos.
