National Children's Strategy Consultation Week [npc.ie]
- Published: 03 April 2011
National Consultation with children and young people on the new National Children’s Strategy (2012-2017), Monday, 4th April – Friday, 8th April 2011
Work has commenced in the Department of Children on the development of a new National Children's Strategy. The new Minister for Children, Frances Fitzgerald, TD, would like to find out the issues of real importance to children and young people all over the country in order to inform the strategy. The national consultation will give them the opportunity to have their voices heard in relation to matters that directly affect their lives.
Children and young people are invited to complete questionnaires in all schools and Youthreach Centres throughout the country from Monday, 4th April - Friday, 8th April 2011. The questions were designed in consultation with children and young people themselves and ask about what's good, what's not good and what they would change about being a child or young person in Ireland today.
Full Story: www.npc.ie
This is a chance to create a system that suits all Irish citizens [Examiner.ie]
- Published: 02 April 2011
THE newly-announced Forum on Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary Sector will change primary education in Ireland. But is the minister’s target of 1,500 schools transferring to new patronage achievable? If it is, what will all these schools transform into and what will it mean for parents?
Full Story: www.examiner.ie
Religion 'a waste' of class time [Independent.ie]
- Published: 02 April 2011
EDUCATION Minister Ruairi Quinn would prefer schools spent time improving reading and maths skills rather than preparing pupils for sacraments such as First Communion and Confirmation.
The minister said the faith formation carried out during the day took up time that could be used in other ways.
He referred to a severe decline in performance by Irish 15-year-olds in the international OECD/PISA league table on literacy published last year, dropping from 5th to 17th place. Maths also dipped.
Primary pupils spend 30 minutes a day on religion, which in Catholic schools includes preparation for the sacraments.
Standardised school year 2011/2012 [npc.ie]
- Published: 02 April 2011
To date there has been no final agreement on the standardisation of the whole school year 2011/2012. However a number of dates have been finalised by the Department of Education and Skills
October 2011 mid-term break
All schools will close from Monday 31st October 2011 to Friday 4th November 2011 inclusive.
Christmas 2011
All schools will close on Thursday 22nd December 2011 which will be the final day of the school term.
All schools will re-open on Monday 9th January 2012.
Full Story: www.npc.ie
80% of teens say recession affected home [IrishExaminer]
- Published: 02 April 2011
FOUR out of every five teenagers feel the recession has had a direct impact on their home life, with job losses and financial worries the sources of particular concern.
The information has emerged in the first in a series of four reports launched by Unicef Ireland.
It focuses on the happiness of Irish teenagers and finds that the overwhelming majority in Ireland report direct effects at home due to the recession.
Some 93% of those surveyed reported less money at home, with 25% reporting a family member having lost their job. Only 37% felt money issues would improve over the next two years.
The report also found bullying continues to be prevalent among young people and is playing a significant role in defining their transition from childhood to adulthood.
More than half of those surveyed said they have been bullied at some point in their lives. Cyber-bullying was found to be affecting one-in-five people.
