Sir, – Last week President Michael D Higgins praised the Educate Together model, which he said had sown the "roots of a sense of justice" for future generations ("Lack of cross-cultural education 'depressing', says President", May 21st). Educate Together was a "pioneering movement which is now mainstream". It had challenged the old church-based model of schooling. Mr Higgins also said Educate Together was the "very opposite of an authoritarian setting. Part of the opposition in the 1970s was the defence of an authority which never could be questioned. It has of its nature created exclusions everywhere. It killed the project of a liberationary and emancipatory project of a republic stone dead in my view."
High praise indeed for the Educate Together model of education from our President.
However, this praise leaves me wondering if my children, along with many thousands of other children who attended mainstream schools, are somehow lacking in a sense of justice and fair play? Are they less educated? Are they slow to question authority? The results of last years marriage equality referendum would seem to suggest the opposite. I presume not all of the young people who voted Yes in the referendum were past pupils of the Educate Together Model!
I would ask Mr Higgins to please at least acknowledge the work of our mainstream schools, be they Roman Catholic, Church of Ireland, Jewish, Muslim or indeed schools of no faith for trying to provide a decent liberal education for all our children. His comments seem to suggest that mainstream schools are failing to educate our children to their full potential as citizens of the republic. – Yours, etc,
Dr DAVID O’GRADY,
Killarney,
Co Kerry.