PAUL ROWE,
Sir, - Martyn Turner's cartoon depicting the teaching of religious doctrine in "the multi-denominational Gaelscoil" (The Irish Times, April 19th) may have misled or confused some readers.
As the national body representing multi-denominational schools - one of which is a Gaelscoil operating under the patronage of an Foras Pátrúnachta - we would like to point out that he has got his terminology wrong.
His cartoon may depict the logical conclusion of a model in which a school undertakes to teach the doctrine of different faiths during the school day and requires its teachers to do this work as part of their contracts. However, this is not the multi-denominational model developed by Educate Together over the past 27 years.
Our schools provide an inclusive programme of education about religious faiths, ethics and cultures during school hours. This promotes understanding and respect for human diversity and epitomises the characteristic spirit of our schools. Our boards of management have a legal obligation to respect and support the identity of all children, whatever their faith. As a result, the board is prevented from promoting any particular faith or teaching any religion as doctrine.
At the same time, we offer school facilities outside school hours to any group of parents who wish to operate specific religious instruction or doctrinal classes.
In practice, many children attending a multi-denominational school operating under the Educate Together model attend Catholic Communion and Confirmation classes outside school hours. These are organised by the Catholic parents themselves in conjunction with Church authorities. Other faiths also attend to their doctrinal needs through their families and with their own religious organisations. Those who consider that the religious formation of their children is a private matter are free to act accordingly.
It is important to stress that such religious instruction classes are voluntary classes outside school hours. In the multi-denominational model, no child is faced with the dilemma of whether to attend or "opt out" of a part of the normal school day.If they do not wish to, families do not even have to identify their religion. Also no teachers are ever placed in the situation in which they are contractually obliged to teach as religious truth a view they may not hold themselves.
We suggest that this model admirably suits the changing educational needs in Ireland and is the type of education that should be provided by a modern state for all its citizens. It is a great regret that the choice of this form of education is available to only 0.7 per cent of Irish citizens and our State policies still restrict the development of such schools. It is doubly ironic that our Taoiseach is willing to cite the development of multi-denominational education as an example of the progress of our society whilst his Government is instead reinforcing an overwhelming monopoly of denominational education.
We are dismayed that we have now been dragged into discussion around the crisis in the inter-denominational Gaelscoil in Dunboyne as a result of the wrong term being used in a cartoon.
We have great sympathy for the parties involved and hope that this controversy will soon find a positive outcome. - Yours, etc.,
PAUL ROWE, Chairperson, Educate Together, Park West Road, Dublin 12.