Sir, – Seéamus Conboy (September 8th) claims that community national schools are "equality-based" but fails to describe how the much-touted "Goodness Me, Goodness You" curriculum used in the schools works in practice.
Are the children of Catholic parents being prepared for holy communion and confirmation during the school day? If so, are these children removed from their classroom or is it the children from non-Catholic families who are removed? If the latter, where do those children go? What are they being taught and by whom? How much class time per year is spent on faith formation for the children of Catholic parents? If the class teacher is instructing Catholic children in faith formation, surely this gives a privileged position to that religion?
It is difficult to imagine how this programme is implemented without causing the “othering” of children. Questions such as these must be answered by advocates of the community national school system to assure parents that their children will not be differentiated from their classmates on the basis of religion.
No child should leave any part of their identity at the school gate, nor would any responsible educator expect them to. But religious identity should not be used as a rubric to separate children during the school day. It is possible to celebrate the identities of children – religious, cultural or social – while keeping them together as a class.
There has been enough obfuscation on the community national school model. It is time for some answers. – Yours, etc,
CATHERINE O’BRIEN,
Saggart,
Co Dublin.