Renting school prefabs in one county costs €3m [IrishExaminer]
- Published: 28 October 2010
THE rental bill to taxpayers for school prefabs in Cork will be around €3 million this year.
Although the figure is down from a bill of almost €4m for city and county schools in 2009, the Labour Party’s Sean Sherlock said the Department of Education could use its money better to provide permanent classroom buildings.The average cost of €12,711 for each of 236 units in primary and second level schools is more than €1,000 less than last year, when 282 prefab units were being used on the grounds of 110 Cork schools.
According to information provided to Mr Sherlock by Education Minister Mary Coughlan in reply to a parliamentary question, the department approved the rental of seven prefabs in Cork so far this year and has ended rental contracts in respect of five units.
Full Story: www.irishexaminer.com
Sign of future success for arty Adrian [Independent.ie]
- Published: 28 October 2010
A PROFOUNDLY deaf student was celebrating yesterday after he came a step closer to fulfilling his dream of becoming an art teacher for deaf children.
Adrian Rynne from Inch, Ennis, Co Clare, was among the 1,300 students who graduated from Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT).
The 26-year-old, who was born deaf, was conferred with a higher diploma in art, for art and design teachers. The Clare student already has a bachelor degree in fine arts from the School of Art and Design at LIT.
Mr Rynne had nothing but praise for the support he received from his sign language interpreter Dympna Hehir.
Full Story: www.independent.ie
Unions seek clarity over definition of teachers’ extra duties
- Published: 27 October 2010
UNIONS and school managers want agreement on what extra duties teachers should do in the extra hour a week required of them under the Croke Park public service pay and reform deal.
The additional hour was to have been provided from the start of the school year last month, but talks on implementation have only got under way in earnest in recent weeks.The Irish National Teachers’ Organisation and Association of Secondary Teachers’ Ireland have both engaged in talks but the Teachers’ Union of Ireland remains outside until the end of next week at least, when a ballot result will determine if members are to suspend industrial action that has led to the Department of Education refusing to negotiate with their officials.
The wording in the deal finalised earlier this year states teachers would be available for the extra hour per week to facilitate duties such as school planning, continuous professional development, induction of new teachers, substitution and supervision, at the discretion of each school’s management. But the Irish Examiner has learned that unions and bodies representing management of schools both favour more specific instructions that would prevent what one education source described as a "carte blanche" approach that could lead to wide discrepancies between schools in the delivery of the extra time.
Full Story: www.irishexaminer.com
Efforts to help combat bullying [IrishExaminer]
- Published: 26 October 2010
AN escalation of child bullying, including cyber-bullying, has prompted the Social and Health Education Project (SHEP) in Cork to organise a course for parents.
The long-established Cork-based training organisation is offering an evening course to support parents and help them to help their children.
According to SHEP the escalation of bullying in both primary and secondary schools in recent years is compounded by the onset of cyber-bullying.
Statistics show that one in five second-year girls has been cyberbullied, and one in four has received threatening phone calls.
Although a recent EU survey found that in Ireland the percentage of children who had experienced cyber-bullying was amongst the lowest of the 23 countries polled, at 4%, the anecdotal evidence presents a very real concern to parents.
Kerri FitzGerald, training and development worker with SHEP, said the organisation runs courses for parents on a number of different issues.
"So we are well-placed to work with them on the issue of bullying. Discovering they are not alone with their problems and the power of working in a small group can bring great strength to people," Ms FitzGerald said.
Full Story: www.irishexaminer.com
Read more: http://www.irishexaminer.com/archives/2010/1026/ireland/efforts-to-help-combat-bullying-134564.html#ixzz142tMtIR7
Most pupils fail to get recommended PE time [IrishExaminer]
- Published: 22 October 2010
ONLY a third of primary school pupils and just 10% of post-primary pupils are receiving the recommended amount of time for physical education every week, a major study has revealed.
The Irish Sports Council study — which uncovered alarming levels of inactivity among 10 to 18-year-olds — goes on to reveal one in four children are unfit, overweight or obese and have high blood pressure.The Department of Education recommends that post-primary students should have two hours of physical education a week, while primary school children should have one hour.
On average, post primary students get 77 minutes of physical education a week, while primary school pupils, get 46, the report states.
Over 5,000 children from 53 primary and 70 post-primary schools took part in the study last year, that makes the sole recommendation to increase participation in physical activity among children.
Called the Children’s Sport Participation and Physical Activity study, it is a follow-up to the School Children and Sport in Ireland study, published by the ESRI in 2005.
Full Story: www.irishexaminer.com
