Emma Nolan is in third class, but her reading and writing ability is at senior infants level, equivalent to a five-year-old. Since being diagnosed in senior infants as having mild general learning disability (MGLD) — previously known as mild mental handicap — she has now spent three school years in a special class at St Eithne's Girls National School in Edenmore, north Dublin.

"She wasn't keeping up and she was spending the day at the top of class with the teacher holding her hand until she moved to the special class. Since then, she has made her own progress and she's really happy, but she is still mainstreamed with her own age group for sports, for art and religion," explained mother Gillian Fitzpatrick.

She and parents of the six other girls in the MGLD class were devastated when it emerged in February that it and 127 other such classes in 119 primary schools were being cut next year.

Education Minister Batt O'Keeffe said the rules for forming such classes were that they needed to have nine or more pupils.

"He's been talking about mainstreaming children like Emma with their own age groups, but I know she will just go backwards if she goes into third class in the autumn. I'd rather keep her at home than let her see how different she is to the rest of the girls, it'll just blow her confidence and all the progress she's made," Ms Fitzpatrick said.

She and parents of many other children being affected by the changes at Dublin schools protested about the measure outside the Dáil yesterday, joined by Emma's teacher Eimear Heffernan.

"These girls have all come on enormously in the three years I've been with the class, but they will just go backwards in September if this goes ahead. The school has just two special needs staff working with 60 other children with more moderate difficulties and they will lose out if the girls don't have a special class," she said. Ms Heffernan has undertaken a diploma in special education course this year to help her work in the special class, but instead of getting to use it there, she will be back teaching a mainstream class in September meaning another school teacher loses their job.

Mr O'Keeffe's spokesperson said last night that the minimum of nine pupils needed to staff a special class has been in place since 1999 and the curriculum is flexible so that teachers can cater for the needs of children of different abilities.

However, Irish National Teachers' Organisation president Declan Kelleher said the minister's decision to close the classes for more than 600 vulnerable children is an act of educational vandalism which will negatively affect each of their futures.