An insider's guide to education
Noel Dempsey was like a cat who got the cream at the press conference for the OECD's Third-Level Review last week. The review, which proposed the return of fees, could have been written by the Minister. It shares his analysis that only the middle classes benefited from the abolition of fees in 1995.
With the Government saying fees are off the agenda and the opposition parties set against them, the OECD report will now be parked.
The OECD says we urgently need to raise investment in third-level to compete internationally. But nothing much will happen. Noel Dempsey says he will look to the Cabinet for a "quantum leap" in funding - but don't hold your breath. There are many other spending priorities and, in any case, Dempsey says spending on primary schools remains his priority.
This brilliant report deserves better. As the university presidents said, it could, if implemented properly, have a hugely significant impact on Irish life and society. But it seems there are few votes in more money for the universities and the institutes of technology.
Don't say it aloud but the country's teachers would love a contested presidential election on October 22nd. Those schools which double as polling stations could close for two extra days. And the timing could hardly be better - just before the mid-term break.
What has happened to the National Association for Principals and Deputy Principals (NAPD)?
The group could have a real influence on the debate on second-level issues, but it is curiously quiet. According to its website, its last press release went out some time in March.
One senior figure was complaining last week about the organisation's very low profile.
Here are a few issues it could comment on. . . the challenge posed to "free" second-level schools by fee-paying schools and grind schools. . . the absenteeism crisis in poorer areas. . . the lack of support services in second-level schools. . . and the new wave of disciplinary problems facing members in some schools.
Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water. . . the multi-million euro swimming pool at DCU remains, well, dead in the water. The pool is ready and the surrounding leisure centre is long since finished. But, starved of funds, it remains closed. So much for a cutting edge, world class third-level sector.
Latest on the Cabinet reshuffle. . . Mary Harney is said to be sounding out the education job. But will a less radical, safer figure get the nod?
Got any education gossip? E-mail us, in confidence, at teacherspet@irish-times.ie
