Madam, - So the Minister of Education (April 6th) is considering publishing school league tables. He claims these won't just include results but also items such as attendance and community links. This, he says, is about parental empowerment. As a secondary teacher, I would like to question what exactly he means by giving parents more power in Irish education.
If he means giving them more input into school policy and development, then I would applaud such an initiative. However, with power comes responsibility. What about parents who are denying their legal/moral responsibility by allowing their children to have chronically poor attendance at school?
In disadvantaged areas of Dublin (and I believe beyond this) this has been an increasing problem. Mr Dempsey's Department of Education fails to take this problem seriously. They have only appointed a third of the required welfare officers and fail to pursue serious prosecutions (if any this year).
So how can he then turn around and publish school league tables on results/attendance which might reflect poorly on a school, when his own Department is failing to do its part by ensuring children attend and thus improve their chances of getting better results?
Parents should have more of a say and more information but parents' groups should also be open to criticism that they have not tackled those among their own numbers who fail in their parental responsibilities. - Yours, etc.,
JOHN MURPHY, Marlfield Close, Kilitipper Way, Tallaght, Dublin 24.