Sir, - Dr Smith's questioning of the obligation of the Roman Catholic church to educate those not of its faith reveals yet another point of tension in an education system struggling to come to terms with its role in a new Ireland.
He is right to point out that the state is fundamentally avoiding its responsibilities in this regard. It is also timely that he draws attention to the willingness of many parties, including planners, property developers and politicians, to abuse the good will of private institutions in providing education services.
Ireland has a privately-owned but publicly-funded education system. Ownership of 99.5 per cent of the primary system, our "national" schools, is held by religious institutions. Under the Education Act of 1998, all schools are legally obliged to uphold and inculcate the religious ethos of their patrons.
Whilst there are understandable historical reasons for this situation, the fact is that the State has been quite prepared to cede its responsibility for education to religious bodies. In the process, the State benefitted enormously, saving itself vast sums of capital expenditure by failing to acquire sites for a national system of State-owned schools. This system wronged only small minorities in a society that was almost homogenous in its ethical and religious preferences. The denial of rights it caused effected only a few whilst our society was exporting much of its youth and had only minimal economic growth. However, it is clearly inappropriate and unsustainable in the emerging Ireland of today - a society that is growing dynamically, attracting back its emigrants, retaining a new highly-sophisticated generation of its youth and providing jobs for a very wide range of people from the European Community and beyond.
Fionnuala Kilfeather's comments (The Irish Times, May 20th) clearly reflect the very real concerns of parents in this situation. The State is not providing an education system available to all. The only schools practically available to 99.5 per cent of parents are run by specific religious interests, which are, as Dr Smith's comments show, feeling the unique ethos of their schools is being undermined by the growing diversity of their intake. If these schools concentrate purely on the needs of their specific flocks, where do the other children go?
To any impartial observer, it is clear that the State must now shoulder its responsibilities to develop an national network of schools that are legally obliged to respect and cherish all religious, ethical, cultural and social identities. This is not only the morally correct response, it offers the State great benefits. The State might also avoid claims from parents whose rights are infringed by being compelled to send their children to schools with an ethos that is contrary to their own. It would also allow the denominational schools to retain and develop their unique identities. The only conceivable alternative is for the State to adopt an approach that would quite unconstitutionally impose a change on the ethical policies of the existing denominational schools and once again duck its national responsibilities.
The development of such a national network of State-owned, inclusive schools has been the aim of Educate Together since the founding of the Dalkey School Project, 25 years ago. The Educate Together model, fully recognised by the Department of Education and Science, is one in which rights of children from all religions and none are equally respected and positively supported in a democratically managed structure. It is a tried and tested response to the educational needs of a diversified Ireland. Perhaps now is the time for the State to adopt this model as its first response to diverse educational needs, and so resolve the dilemmas posed both by Dr Smith and Fionnuala Kilfeather. - Yours, etc.,
Paul Rowe, Chairperson, Educate Together, South Circular Road, Dublin 8.