IPPN

Teacher's Pet [IrishTimes]

Published: 15 February 2011

An insider’s guide to education

As the election campaign enters its final phase, senior education figures are focusing on one question – who will be the next Minister for Education?

Everything depends, of course , on the balance of forces between Fine Gael and Labour after the poll. And there is still the possibility of a minority Fine Gael government supported by Fianna Fáil. Most education insiders believe the next education minister will come from the Labour ranks. Since Fine Gael’s James O’Reilly is set to take the health portfolio, the assumption is that Labour will get the other big spending department – education.

Labour’s very active education spokesman Ruairí Quinn is the name most widely mentioned for the post. But could Labour leader Eamon Gilmore settle in Marlborough Street? That is the informed view of one seasoned observer.

On the Fine Gael side, Richard Bruton continues to be mentioned as a future education minister. Bruton was an outstanding education spokesman. Ten years ago, he produced a report on science education which remains essential reading. He is also very strong on the issue of school accountability.

Brian Hayes, who is back in the Enda Kenny fold, would also be an outstanding education minister.

Despite it key importance, not to mention its €9 billion budget, education is curiously still regarded as a second-tier ministry.

Full Story: www.irishtimes.com

Who earns what in our education quangos? [IrishTimes]

Published: 15 February 2011

The number of education agencies or quangos has increased dramatically in the past decade. But what do these agencies do? And how do they pay their staff? PETER McGUIRE and SEÁN FLYNN report

LATE LAST year The Irish Times revealed how over 60 staff in the education sector earn more than €150,000 per year. A further 476 staff earn more than €110,000. In all, 497 people are on the professorial salary scale, €113,00-€145,000.

The top earner was Prof Des Fitzgerald, vice-president for research at UCD, who earns over €263,000.

The high earnings were revealed at a time when the education service is coming to terms with severe cutbacks. Programmes for the disadvantaged and services for special needs children have been scaled back. Deeper cuts are expected over the next three years.

Last year, the McCarthy, or the Bord Snip Nua, report recommended a culling of the various education quangos. Many, the report said, could be re-integrated back into the Department of Education or completely abolished. This would save money and provide a better service – a win-win for the taxpayer.

But the expected “Bonfire of the Quangos” never took place in last year’s budget. Last week Fine Gael said it would abolish 150 quangos across the State sector.

The agencies say they are providing an essential service at very cost-efficent rates. They stress how they can make decisions free from day-to-day political pressures and bureaucracy – and use the the best available expertise. In this, the second article in The Irish Times ’ education pay survey we examine pay levels in these agencies. This information was compiled over several months.

Many agencies co-operated fully with this survey but others were unwilling to provide information on pay and pension payments to The Irish Times, despite being fully funded by the taxpayer.

What are the main findings?

Full Story: www.irishtimes.com

Entrepreneurship at primary and third level [www.bizstartup.ie]

Published: 15 February 2011

The 'Generation Next' competition is seeking creative entries from third-level students throughout Ireland, with a view to eventually implementing winning ideas in primary schools.

Launched today by entrepreneur and 'Dragon' Sean Gallagher, the competition is aimed at introducing entrepreneurship to young people.

It was developed by the South-East Regional Authority (SERA) and supported by the nationwide network of County and City Enterprise Boards (CEBs).

For the competition, third-level students are invited to submit ideas on how to introduce entrepreneurship as a subject in primary-school classrooms. A prize fund of €1,000 and a number of Apple iPads are up for grabs for winning entries.

Entries can be based around the idea of a website, for example, or a series of animated drawings, or even a toolkit with games and role-plays for primary-school children, focusing on enterprise education.

“We’re looking for innovative, creative entries from third-level students – ideas that would encourage primary-school children to start thinking about what it means to be an entrepreneur, and help them begin to develop the skills-set needed to set up an enterprise or business,” said Cllr. John Cummins, cathaoirleach of the SERA.

Of interest to a wide range of students

“‘Generation Next’ should be of interest to a wide range of students – in addition to those studying enterprise and education, it also offers students of disciplines such as digital media, art and communications an opportunity to submit their ideas and possibly see them implemented in classrooms throughout Ireland.”

Speaking at today’s event, Gallagher said: “This is a great initiative to get young people more interested in, and aware of, the role of enterprise and entrepreneurship in Irish society. I have no doubt that this competition will help encourage the next generation of aspiring entrepreneurs and help them develop Ireland’s future business successes.”

The deadline for receipt of entries is 8 April 2011. The competition will culminate in an awards ceremony in late April 2011. Further information and full guidelines are available here

Is there a place for God in the Irish classroom? [Independent.ie]

Published: 15 February 2011

As Catholic Bishops defend their influence in schools, reformers wonder whether the curriculum has too much religion

The place of religion in schools is likely to be a hot issue for a new Education Minister when he or she takes up their post after the election.

With the Catholic Church set to give up control of many of its primary schools, there is likely to be controversy about how religion is taught.

At the recent Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education, Labour's education spokesman Ruairi Quinn, one of the front-runners to be the next minister, hinted that too much time was being spent on religion in schools.

He asked whether it was time to reconsider the 2.5 hours spent on religion every week following Ireland's recent poor scores in literacy and maths in the international PISA survey.

Ireland spends the highest percentage of class time on religion in the OECD table of developed countries at both primary and second levels.

At second level, the amount of instruction time devoted to matters of the spirit is 9% -- three times the OECD average.

At primary level, 10% of class time is spent on religion, over double the amount in other OECD countries.

The Catholic Bishop of Achonry Brendan Kelly has dismissed the links made by Ruairi Quinn between these poor scores and the amount of time devoted to faith formation and Irish in schools as "spurious''.

At the recent launch of Catholic Schools Week, he said: "The suggestion seemed to be that it was time, perhaps, to drop Irish and religion from the curriculum, that somehow that was the remedy for the falling standards in maths and literacy."

The Bishop asked: "Are we to exclude the things that move our hearts most deeply and form the pillars of our Irish character and culture and conscience from our schools?''

At present 90% of primary schools in the country are under Catholic patronage. Pupils are given faith-formation classes during school hours. Parents have a right to withdraw children from religion classes, but this is not always practical.

The recently reported case of Martijn Leenheer, an irate father in Leitrim, who withdrew his son Finn from Drumlease Primary School when he discovered that he was reciting prayers, highlighted how religion can become a flashpoint.

The influence of the Catholic church on education was also raised in a recent inspection report by the Teaching Council of Mary Immaculate Teacher Training College in Limerick. It noted that the time allocated for religion in the college was four times that for science.

The Catholic Church has agreed that it will have to give up control of many of its primary schools. But there is still likely to be controversy about how religion will be taught in the new types of multi-denominational school that are likely to emerge.

The key question is: should children be given religious instruction inside school hours as part of the curriculum, or outside school hours?

The fast-growing Educate Together national schools have taken the second approach. In place of faith formation, students follow an Ethical Education Curriculum, where they learn about different religions and belief systems.

Under this system, religious instruction by specific churches takes place outside school hours.

A second type of multi-denominational primary school has emerged under the patronage of the Vocational Education Committees.

At five VEC Community National Schools, pupils follow a common religious programme -- "Goodness Me, Goodness You" ( nicknamed in some quarters "Goodness, Gracious Me").

The children are taught together most of the time, using stories, songs and poems from a number of religions.

At other times, children are divided into two groups. One group, which includes Christians and Muslims, say prayers to God. A second group, including Buddhists and Atheists, spends this time meditating on the lesson.

Many of the new primary schools that are opening across the country follow a multi-denominational model, but there are concerns that teacher training has failed to keep up with the pace of change.

At present all the teacher-training colleges apart from the online Hibernia College are organised along religious lines.

Until recently there was little or no training of teachers in education colleges for the ethical programmes in the fast-growing multi-denominational sector. But that is now changing.

For the first time ever, St Patrick's College, Drumcondra, is allowing trainee teachers to take a course entitled Ethics and Education as an alternative to Religious Education.

Emer Nowlan, head of education at Educate Together, said: "We welcome this historic development and look forward to working with the college to develop and deliver the course."

Michael Moriarty, General Secretary of Irish Vocational Education Association, said the training colleges need to adapt.

"We need to take into account the changing mores of society. When teachers are being trained, there needs to be a much more integrated approach so that they are prepared for different types of schools.''

A survey by the INTO almost a decade ago showed that only 36% of primary teachers were in favour of continuing with denominational training of teachers while 46% were against.

- Kim Bielenberg