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Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 28 Sep 1995

Vol. 456 No. 2

Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - School Year Duration.

Máirín Quill

Question:

9 Miss Quill asked the Minister for Education the views, if any, she has regarding the manner in which changes in the duration of the school year are communicated to school principals; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13614/95]

The intention to secure the integrity of the school year was signalled well in advance. It was clearly outlined in the Green Paper on Education — Education for a Changing World — in June 1992 and in the White Paper on Education — Charting our Education Future — in April, 1995, both of which were widely circulated to school authorities and other interested bodies.

In accordance with the commitment outlined in the White Paper, circulars on Time in School were issued to primary and second-level schools on 11 August 1995. They confirmed the position which is that schools must be in operation for a minimum of 183 days at primary level and 167 days at second level.

Following the issue of the circulars I was anxious to facilitate schools requiring further clarification on specific aspects of the circulars. To this end I arranged for officers of my Department to staff helplines to assist schools in dealing with implementation problems. I believe that the action I have taken will ensure that the integrity of the school year will be safeguarded.

Will the Minister accept that school principals begin to put their timetables in place for the forthcoming year in the spring and that before schools close for the summer holidays the timetables are in place and teacher allocations have been agreed? Will she also accept that sending a circular on 11 August in respect of the school year that breaches an already established timetable is the work of somebody who has no idea about how schools are run and how school timetables are designed or administered? It is nothing short of a scandal to treat schools in that manner and to expect them to revisit and revise painstakingly worked out and agreed timetables. I ask the Minister to accept that it is a scandal. She must also accept that this has been a feature of recent times in the Department of Education.

I was involved in education for over 25 years in one way or another until eight and a half years ago. There is now a chasm between school principals and the Department of Education that was never there in my time. This is due to poor communication, badly timed circulars being sent out by the Department and a total lack of proper consultation in advance. In my day I never saw the Department of Education spend so much money on PR and so little on proper and necessary communication with school principals, teachers and those who deliver education in the classrooms.

We extended nothing in the context of the school circulars. We reaffirmed the current position, the rules as laid down by earlier circulars that there were 183 days at primary level, 167 days at second level, and defined the length of the school day and half-day. While it has been argued that schools had arranged their timetables, this circular did not require schools to change the timetable once it was in operation for the required number of days per annum and hours per week. Where there was an excessive number of half-days we were seeking a change of timetable.

The Department in this circular — which was well signalled in advance — secured the school day. I have met principals who have thanked me for the circular because they have not timetabled excessive half-days. They have timetabled within the prescribed number of days and hours as laid down by the Department of Education. Schools that have not been involved in raising a storm have abided by the timetable.

The circular did not extend the school week. It asked the schools to devise their own timetables according to their own requirements as long as they met the laid down and accepted time of the school day. It did not seek to pre-empt the outcome of the talks because the subject of the additional six days was excluded from the circular. Schools that are having no difficulty with the Time in School circular have been timetabling according to the times and days laid down by the Department of Education.

The time is all but exhausted. I will call Deputy Quill and then Deputy Martin for a concluding question.

My difficulty is not with the content of the circular; my difficulty is with the timing of issuing this circular and a number of similar circulars to school principals. The Minister must accept that the current position is unsatisfactory. I picked this circular as a good example. I thought the Minister would easily identify with the fact that most people are on holidays on 11 August; I am sure the Minister was on holidays on that date as I was. It is an inappropriate time to issue a circular on matters of this nature to schools.

The schools that received the circular in August and have no difficulty with it were the ones that were abiding by the rules and regulations of the Department of Education.

That is not quite true.

It is true. I must give a factual answer to the Deputy. It is true that there were schools which were taking excessive half-days.

That is not the point.

Some schools had developed the habit of bringing in infants over several weeks. In this circular I did not add one extra hour to the school day as laid down and required by the Department of Education. However, I am not totally heartless and where schools over-reached themselves in timetabling half-days that were not covered by the Department's regulations and where they had specific problems because the circular was issued in August we set up a helpline and have been involved with principals in the timetabling. The timing of the circular was a result of the delicate negotiations that were going on earlier. Where there were difficulties they were due to people changing the school day as prescribed by the Department. We have told schools that if they have difficulty in implementing the circular this year they should contact us. In the Department we not only have helplines and a freephone line but we have installed a communications centre so that people can communicate with the Department about necessary changes as the system of the Department moves forward.

Many principals will not be contacting the helpline because, quite simply, they are saying they are ignoring the circular. The unions are saying, to quote one official, the circular is dead. I put it to the Minister that it is about time she acknowledged those teachers who put in extra hours above and beyond the call of duty, organise concerts, coach various sports teams, etc. The Minister may well nod, but they are going to start billing her and her Department for the hours put in after school hours and, if we get into a regimented overregulated system like that pertaining across the water, we will diminish and devalue the system that we have at present. The education system as we know it depends largely on extra commitment, above and beyond the call of duty, from our teaching profession.

To draw this discussion to a conclusion, poor practice had crept into a system and there was such an outcry that maybe the Department of Education had underestimated quite what was happening. It is not my job to do anything except administer the education, system, as the Minister for Education, and to turn a blind eye and ignore the calls from the many parent organisations——

Acknowledge the extra time.

As a Minister, I did not overstep my responsibilities. I smiled when the Deputy asked why I would not acknowledge the extra help given by teachers, I did so at one of the Easter conferences and the response that I received from those who sat in the audience will never invite me to congratulate them in their own fora.

They were annoyed about different matters.

As Minister, I have attended many of their concerts and stood on the sideline at many of their football matches. I have attended wonderful happenings, as I did last night, on their behalf as Minister. I have, by my presence at these extracurricular activities, signalled my absolute support and thanks to the teaching profession of Ireland — a profession I may return to at a future time.

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