USI yesterday launched its submission on the proposed Education Bill, which is the next major piece of legislation set to emerge from the Department of Education. The Bill emerged originally during the reign of Niamh Bhreathnach as Minister for Education, but is likely to be amended substantially by the current Minister. USI wants it to offer statutory recognition to student councils and encourages schools to establish councils where they do not already exist.
Students' unions have largely ceased to exist in second-level schools here, though they remain strong elsewhere in Europe. Ironically, the Organising Bureau for European Students' Unions (OBESSU) was originally founded in Ireland in the 1970s, but no national branch currently exists. "Student councils are only now starting to spring up around the country," says USI's education officer, Malcolm Byrne. "They range from some which are models of democracy and have a real effect on the running of their schools to others which are simply collections of prefects."
USI wants an inspector from the Department of Education to have, as part of his or her functions, responsibility for assisting and advising student councils. The national union also wants a section included in the Bill which would require the patron of the school, where a student council exists, to appoint the chairperson or other elected representative of the council to the school Board.
"A lot of what we argue is that, firstly, if you want to encourage young people to take a civic responsibility, then you do that by empowering them," Byrne says. "Secondly, it's a very effective means of communication. Decisions on the board of management can be relayed back to students and students can have a say in the running of their school."
To this end, USI wants the Bill to recognise that a student council "may advise the principal or the board on any matter relating to the school and the principal or board, as the case may be, shall have regard to such advice". The rules for the establishment of such councils, according to USI, should be made by the Minister in consultation with interested parties, and school boards should promote contact between schools, councils and parents' associations.
Given that many of us, at some point or another, will be required to serve on committees or deal on a formal basis with those with similar interests to us, Byrne believes that student councils are a "basic form of civic training". They would also provide a basic training for the more pressing demands placed on student representatives at third level.
