‘Extra teachers needed for religion alternative’
Despite his insistence that a directive to give some second-level students an opt-out from religious instruction would not require extra staffing, representatives of schools and teachers said there will be resourcing implications.
The Department of Education has told 300 second-level community and multi-denominational schools, managed by education and training boards (ETBs), that children must be allowed to opt out of religious instruction.
However, instead of being told they should instead sit in the library or at the back of a classroom, any students availing of the option must be offered an alternative subject.
The department told the last week that the process was not about adding further subject choices to the timetable. However, yesterday, Mr Bruton told RTÉ’s Today with Sean O’Rourke radio programme that schools would have to provide the extra choice without additional staff.
“We’re not providing extra resources, as part of this, because it’s really about reconfiguring their offering. It’s a question of extending the hours of some subjects and reducing the hours of others, or reducing the amount of timetabling for other subject areas, depending on demand,” the minister said.
His comments were rejected by Michael Moriarty, general secretary of Education and Training Boards Ireland (ETBI), which represents the 16 ETBs.
Their schools, Mr Moriarty said, would survey parents, as required by the department. However, he said that there would be a high demand for students to opt out of religious instruction, particularly from senior-cycle students, who may wish to take an additional Leaving Certificate subject.
“The circular [letter from the department] looks for alternative, parallel teaching of another subject and that’s going to have resourcing implications, no matter what the minister says,” said Mr Moriarty.
The Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) also said it had serious concerns over the failure of the minister to provide resourcing for this measure.
“Other subject options will have to be provided at the time that religion takes place.
“Quite clearly, this will require the employment of additional teachers in schools,” the union said.
The TUI said that offering extra hours in some subject areas would add to severe difficulties around the recruitment and retention of teachers across a growing range of subjects, an issue the union said is due to pay inequality.
The question of teacher shortages will be addressed this afternoon by TDs and senators, when they meet with representatives of schools, teachers, and other education bodies.
The issue was discussed at a consultative forum, last week, organised by the Teaching Council.
The latter will be represented at a hearing of the Oireachtas education committee.
The committee will also hear submissions from the ETBI, Catholic Primary Schools’ Management Association, and organisations representing primary- and second-level principals, and the boards of special schools and schools with special classes.
The Leinster House hearing will also be addressed by the Association of Secondary Teachers’ Ireland (ASTI), Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO), and An Comhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaíochta, which provides teaching resources, and other supports, for Irish-medium schools.
