Criticism of teacher cover changes
- Published: 18 December 2008
Source: Irish Examiner
By Niall Murray, Education Correspondent
PROPOSED changes to substitution cover for second-level teachers will not be enough to allow schools to continue sports and other extra curricular activities, principals have warned.
A deal was reached earlier this month between Education Minister Batt O'Keeffe and school management bodies to lift proposed restrictions on cover for teachers on uncertified sick leave and official school business. The situation improved the scenario in which school managers and teachers had warned that the ban on all such substitution and supervision cover from January, as proposed in the budget, would have led to children being sent home because of inadequate supervision.
However, the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals said it will be impossible to implement the revised scheme.
Schools will be allocated a set number of hours for substitution or supervision, depending on their student numbers, based on a ratio of 16 hours substitution cover for schools with 100 pupils or less, 32 hours for a 200 pupil school and 64 hours for a 400 pupil school.
Association director Clive Byrne said that, while the level of cover will go a long way to averting the crisis previously expected, schools will have to curtail sports, drama and field trips.
"Most of the hours will be used by any school for uncertified sick leave ... There will be little time left after that for co-curricular activities," he said.
It is expected that the operation of the new scheme could also depend on the co-operation of teachers asked to supervise classes due to have been taken by colleagues who are away with class groups. Most of the country's 25,000 second level teachers are signed up to do 37 hours of supervision each school year for a payment of about €1,800, but those hours are almost entirely used up on fostered supervision of break times and after-school supervision.
