Principals in 'no man's land' over 2010 plans [The Kerryman]
- Published: 04 February 2009
Source: The Kerryman
By: Dónal Nolan
PRIMARY principals in Kerry cannot plan for the immediate future of their schools as they remain completely in the dark as to how the government intend implementing cuts come September next.
One of the greatest concerns among principals in Kerry at present is the lack of hard information at hand to plan for 2009/2010. They say that without any idea of what kind of resources to expect, they are unable to fully plan for the future of our primary pupils.
An increase in the pupilteacher ratio, cuts in English-language support teachers, no uncertified sick-leave cover and the withdrawal of disadvantaged status from some schools were all among the education cuts proposed in October.
While Education Minister Batt O'Keeffe - who addressed the Irish Primary Principals' Network conference in Killarney on Friday - was forced to scale down the sick-leave cover to stop school closures as of January, most other measures remain in place. Principals just don't know how they'll be brought in as yet.
"We're slated to lose three full-time teachers here as our disadvantaged-school status was revoked under the budget," Listowel Presentation Primary Principal, Joan Mulvihill, told The Kerryman. Her school — the biggest primary in North Kerry outside Tralee — has three 'concessionary' posts under this status. However, these will now be axed it is feared, ever before the new pupil/ teacher ratio comes into effect.
"We're hugely worried at the moment as it will reduce our core class-teaching staff from 12 to 9. In a school with 258 pupils we can ill-afford to lose even one teacher and concern is very deep here still. But as we haven't been officially notified of anything yet, we simply can't move on anything," Ms Mulvihill said.
In St Oliver's school in Killarney — one of the ten biggest primaries in the country — up to six teachers could be lost under proposed measures for Englishlanguage support teaching.
Again, however, the school have no idea what to expect. "We have an assurance now that each school will be looked at on an individual basis, but when is this going to happen and what criteria will be used to see who will be retained and who will be lost?" Principal Rory Darcy asked.
The school will not lose teachers to ratio increase in the coming year, given their enrolment (at 637 pupils currently), but stand to lose hugely in English-language support.
"We're in no man's land at present, completely in the dark and my fear is that it will be left to the last minute, either by accident or design, to implement the proposals," Mr Darcy added.
"Everyone realises the country is in a difficult position at the moment, but I think if we're expected to accept the cuts when they are introduced they had better be transparent, equitable and fair at the very least."
Specific cuts to be known in a month [The Kerryman]
- Published: 04 February 2009
Source: The Kerryman
By: Dónal Nolan
PRIMARY schools in Kerry can expect to learn of specific cuts to their staff within a month, Minister for Education and Science Batt O'Keeffe told The Kerryman this week.
Speaking specifically of cuts in English-language teachers, Minister O'Keeffe told The Kerryman on Friday that new allocations for schools in Kerry would be announced within a month. It's one of the many cuts expected to hit schools under the budget proposals come September next and could see the county's largest primary, St Oliver's in Killarney, losing up to six teachers. Minister O'Keeffe is set to reimpose a limit of two English-language teachers per school. 500 jobs are expected to be lost nationally, as a result.
"The allocation should be out within a month," Minister O'Keeffe told The Kerryman. Where a school exceeds the quota of new non-national pupils who require English-language support teaching, they will be looked at on an individual basis by the Department, he explained. "No decision has been taken on that yet but every school will have the right to appeal to an independent appeals board if they're not satisfied with the outcome of the allocation," he said.
Fine Gael spokesperson on Education, Brian Hayes, who also addressed this week's IPPN conference in Killarney, said it was vital that schools would be appraised of proposed cuts as soon as possible.
"Schools are being left in the dark and they don't know where they stand. There are two many snouts in the trough when it comes to education, too many agencies involved and the government are not prioritising the front line, our teachers and schools," he said.
Deputy Hayes said it the only way the country can now get through the recession is through investment in the 'front line' - including education. "More power should be given principals to use their own resources and it is vital that capital investment in our schools is prioritised. One result of the current climate, indeed, should be that building should become cheaper at least and the government must capitalise on this," he said.
Minister O'Keeffe, however, said the government had been 'singular' in indicating it would continue to invest. "The government have been quite singular in indicating that it will invest and will borrow for investment in what we call productive infrastructure and also infrastructure that will produce immediate jobs."
He told The Kerryman that he is also going to reintroduce a summer works scheme for school building - that will be introduced within the next six weeks.
- DÓNAL NOLAN
Minister quits his teaching post after 22 years in Dail
- Published: 04 February 2009
Minister quits his teaching post after 22 years in Dail
Tuesday February 03 2009
TRANSPORT Minister Noel Dempsey has officially retired from his teaching post, 22 years after taking his Dail seat, it emerged last night.
The minister's move comes as Education Minister Batt O'Keeffe considers calling time on teacher-TDs who hold on to their classroom jobs indefinitely.
Minister O'Keeffe may put a time limit, of possibly 10 years, on how long they can keep open the option of returning to their former teaching post.
Many teachers currently turn to politics safe in the knowledge that if their political career ends they can walk back into their old job.
While on what is known as Oireachtas leave, they retain their full salary and allowances -- and the cost of their replacement is deducted from this.
The TD or senator is entitled to keep the remainder of the salary, and some do, although a number of members of the Oireachtas have chosen not to accept any outstanding balance.
The arrangements could mean that a TD was paid €60,000 a year before being elected to the Dail, is replaced by a substitute on €50,000, and can pocket the outstanding €10,000 on top of their Oireachtas salary.
Teachers elected to the Houses of the Oireachtas also continue to clock up incremental credits and pension entitlements related to their teaching post.
The system results in permanent teaching posts being blocked off to other staff members, including the replacement who may be doing the job for years.
Some teacher TDs, including Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny and independent TD Finian McGrath, have previously resigned from their former jobs.
However a number, including Foreign Minister Micheal Martin, elected in 1989, and Social Welfare Minister Mary Hanafin, elected in 1997, are still on the Department of Education books, although neither accepts any salary balance.
Minister Dempsey, who was elected in 1987, retained his teaching post in November according to the Department of Education.
But information compiled by the department in January now shows him to be "retired".
Discussions
The tradition of teacher-TDs holding on to their old jobs indefinitely has come under increasing fire in recent years.
When it was highlighted in November, the Department of Education said the policy would not change, but now Minister O'Keeffe has signalled a re-think.
Green Party TD Paul Gogarty has asked the minister about putting a 10-year limit -- typically two Dail terms -- on the Oireachtas leave.
Minister O'Keeffe, a retired Cork Institute of Technology lecturer, has confirmed that he will "consider the matter and the proposal to limit the period of the approved leave of absence from teaching duty in the light of the outcome of discussions with the education partners in relation to teacher redeployment".
- Katherine Donnelly
Students to suffer as VECs hit with cutbacks
- Published: 04 February 2009
Students to suffer as VECs hit with cutbacks
Source: Irish Independent
Tuesday February 03 2009
THE country's 33 Vocational Education Committees are set to lose €13.3m as a result of the Budget, a new study has revealed.
The loss is due to changes in staffing levels, a 5pc cut in adult and further education, an 8pc cut in youth grants and a 3pc cut in VECs' payroll.
Irish Vocational Education Association's General secretary Michael Moriarty last night said the cuts would particularly hit the vulnerable and disadvantaged.
The survey claims that more than 80 posts allocated to disadvantaged areas would be lost.
The schools that will lose out were previously classified as disadvantaged but are not included in the DEIS scheme (Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Education).
Disadvantaged
DEIS was introduced four years ago and currently caters for 876 primary and post-primary schools at a cost of €80m this year. But 130 other schools previously regarded as disadvantaged have lost that status.
As well as losing posts they will also lose financial supports such as book grants.
Mr Moriarty said that while it is important to focus supports in DEIS schools it was lunacy to assume there were no children from disadvantaged backgrounds in non-DEIS schools.
"These pupils may now be left to fend for themselves in schools which have considerably fewer resources and less capacity to address their needs. In such cases, it will be the survival of the fittest, and my fear is that the vulnerable will fall away in the absence of the range of supports that are confined now to DEIS schools," he added.
He said two factors alone -- where young people lived and their family income -- could tip the balance in favour of advantage or disadvantage.
The vast majority of the 3pc who left school with no qualifications came from the lowest socio-economic backgrounds, Mr Moriarty added.
- John Walshe Education Editor
Job fears spark a rise in college applications
- Published: 04 February 2009
Job fears spark a rise in college applications
Source: Irish Independent
Wednesday February 04 2009
COLLEGE applications have jumped this year, most likely due to the jobs gloom and the threat of a return of third-level fees in the future.
According to preliminary figures, the CAO received more than 66,000 applications before the February 1 deadline.
It is up by well over 2,000 on the comparable figure last year, when there were 63,868 applications. There were 61,961 applications in 2007.
The shrinking jobs market is certain to have played a role as this year's school-leavers considered their choices for next September.
And Education Minister Batt O'Keeffe's support for the return of fees may have persuaded second-level students and their parents not to delay any decision to go to college.
Mr O'Keeffe is due to present proposals on the fees issue to the Cabinet in April.
In recent years, a rise in CAO applications was attributed to greater demand from mature applicants, but a similar trend is not evident this year.
Nor is any significant change expected in Leaving Certificate candidate numbers, which suggests that a greater proportion of school-leavers are opting for the college route this year.
Overall application figures usually rise further as the year goes on and as the CAO accepts late applications.
Higher Education Authority (HEA) chief executive Tom Boland said the evidence pointed to the fact that someone who leaves school early was four times as likely to be unemployed and when the economy recovers there would be more employment opportunities for graduates.
Science
Mr Boland said it still made more sense for people to stay in, or return to, education. He said that even in the current climate, Ireland still needed more graduates in certain disciplines, such as science and technology, particularly in areas such as "green energy" and biotechnology.
The trends in demand for different disciplines is not yet known, but it is to be expected that areas, such as architecture, which have been badly hit by the recession, will see a further downturn in interest, while there may be greater pressure for 'safer' areas such as teaching.
- Katherine Donnelly
