asked the Minister for Education if he is aware that a committee of the I.N.T.O. has found that all text-books used by its members are unsatisfactory and undesirable, and, if so, if he will be guided by the opinion of such a competent organisation in this regard, and have the matter attended to at once.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - National School Text-Books.
I am not aware that such a finding was arrived at by the committee referred to. In any event I do not accept the view that the text-books sanctioned for use in national schools are unsatisfactory and undesirable.
All text-books submitted for inclusion in the approved list are scrutinised by technical officers of my Department and inclusion is dependent on their being favourably recommended by these officers. I might add that the majority of the text-books in use in national schools have been prepared by national school teachers.
asked the Minister for Education if he is aware of the scarcity of suitable national school text-books, and that grave hardships are imposed on parents by the high cost of school books, particularly where there are a number of children attending school from the same family, and, if so, if he will indicate what steps he proposes to take in the matter.
The preparation and publishing of school books are not undertaken by the Department of Education but by private firms; consequently I have no direct control over the cost of these books. I am, of course, concerned about the cost of school books to parents and my Department urges, in its annual circular to managers and principal teachers regarding the list of approved text-books, that care be taken to see that school books are not changed too frequently.
In addition, a scheme has been in operation in my Department since 1939 for providing State aid towards the cost of supplying school books to necessitous children.
I am not aware that there is a scarcity of suitable text-books and I do not feel called upon to take any action in the matter.
Has the Minisster's attention not been directed to the fact that every year school books are becoming dearer and the burden becoming heavier on poorer parents?
My attention has not been directed to that. Each year the circular to which I have referred is issued to school managers and principal teachers and, in fact, the part of the circular dealing with the provision of new school books is in particularly black type.
Is it not a pity that the same school books cannot be used for two or three years?
They are, in fact, over a reasonable cycle. I am satisfied with that.