Vol. 435 No. 10
96 Mr. Bradford asked the Minister for Education if she has satisfied herself that the text books used in the teaching of Irish history at both primary and post primary level give a sufficiently balanced perspective of the major events in Irish history.
Under Rule 66 of the Rules for National Schools publishers may submit draft copies of their textbooks to the Department for approval to be placed on the list of books sanctioned for use in national schools. Approval of textbooks is given only after the drafts have been closely scrutinised by professionals in my Department. It is then a matter for the school authorities to decide which books on the approved list are most suitable for the needs of their school.
In all stages of the process of scrutiny, care is taken to ensure that the draft history textbooks (and the series of text-books to which it belongs) is balanced with regard to objectivity and an appreciation of the beliefs and traditions of all communities within the country.
Given the care taken in the scrutiny of draft text books I am satisfied that the history textbooks included in the approved list give a sufficiently balanced perspective of the major events in Irish history.
The text-books used as aids in the teaching of history in post-primary schools are chosen by the teachers themselves and are not prescribed by my Department. An objective of the education process for teachers of history, at both initial and in-service training, is the development of special sensitivity in the selection of text-books with a view to ensuring that their content is deemed suitable both for the history syllabuses being taught and also for the students in the context of the aims and objectives of the specific syllabuses.
I am not aware of any cause for concern in this regard.
