Sir, – Seán Byrne’s article (Rite & Reason, April 30th) gives a very unbalanced view of community schools.
Parents of the 60,000 young people who attend our schools are generally very happy with the ethos and the inclusiveness that they experience there, as our parents’ organisation, Parents Association of Community & Comprehensive Schools, will attest.
Comprehensive schools, and later community schools, are rightly credited with bridging the gap between a highly academic and a strong vocational system. We were very innovative in having parents on our representative boards over 40 years ago. This model is proven and now the norm.
Mr Byrne alleges, without supporting evidence, that parents have little influence on key decisions in our schools, being outnumbered by all other nominees. I work with boards every day and I believe this not to be the case. Our boards operate as a local management team, a corporate entity, making important decisions for the school together. Boards can have members nominated by teachers who are parents, and vice-versa, similarly for other nominees, so simplistic labelling can be misleading.
Mr Byrne is dismissive of some of the first teachers and principals of the new schools as former members of religious orders. Our principals and teachers have a proud leadership record in the field of education, a cursory glance at Whole School Evaluation and Management, Leadership and Learning reports can testify to this continuing exemplary leadership.
Our statutory instrument makes provision for both religious instruction and worship but it is “in accordance with the rites, practice and teaching of the religious denomination to which the pupil belongs”. This respectful multidenominational aspect is very important to us. Mr Byrne states, without evidence, that in Protestant schools “whatever religion is taught is broad and uncontentious”. Are we to take from this that where there is Catholic patronage it is therefore narrow and contentious?
In our schools I am happy to agree with Mr Byrne that religion “is taught to those who wish to learn the answers to those questions provided by Christianity and other faiths”. The religion syllabus is knowledge-based rather than faith based, and looks at a broad range of religions, for those participating. Those who choose not to can be withdrawn. It is very challenging in multi-denominational schools to cater adequately and equally for all faiths and none, requiring additional resources and resourcefulness. Our paid school chaplains support us in meeting these challenges and organise religious worship appropriate to pupil needs. Mr Byrne is also wrong in his assertion that in VEC-managed community colleges chaplains are not paid by the State, they are.
Our sector has always been innovative in its thinking. We will shortly have our first community school without religious patrons. We are now reviewing our deed of trust to meet the diverse students’ needs as we have proudly and effectively done since our foundation more than 40 years ago. – Yours, etc,
CIARÁN FLYNN,
General Secretary,
Association of Community
and Comprehensive Schools,
Oak Road, Dublin 12.