If tomorrow's fortune rests on the shoulders of the younger generations it is hard to understate the importance of the schooling delivered by teachers today.
In Belgium this key service is at risk, with the education sector long beset by teacher shortages which often require classes to be grouped together or even for pupils to study independently. Hiring new teachers is a battle that looms over head teachers and school management in the weeks before a new academic year.
Things are further complicated by Belgium's language divide, which splits responsibility for education between the French and Dutch language communities. Unlike the Federal Government these two authorities have already been formed, but school staff are dissatisfied with the proposals put forward in the French language community (the Wallonia-Brussels Federation), which they fear undermines job security and makes the profession even less appealing to the much-needed next generation of teachers.
Not deaf to the teaching concerns, the francophone Education Minister has likened the instability to a "sword of Damocles" that prevents young teachers from developing the long-term relationships with pupils that are key to learning outcomes. But despite assurances that reforms would be carried out in concert with teacher federations, unions mobilised en masse on Tuesday to show their anger.
"It has been a long time since I have seen such a spontaneous mobilisation from staff and schools," said the leader of one teachers' union, who presented the strike as the "start of a long battle". But it's a campaign that has already been simmering for years.
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