Sir, – The Irish Times/Ipsos MRBI survey (Home News, April 21st 22nd) shows that only 41 per cent of a representative sample disagree with Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn’s assertion that teachers don’t fully understand the gravity of the financial crisis.
It is difficult for many – even economists – to fully grasp the gravity of the economic crisis we are in, but even if we had full understanding of all those billions borrowed by others that we now have to pay back, teachers believe that we cannot afford to cut yet more from such an underfunded system.
What teachers understand and experience is the personal effect of the crisis as partners lose jobs and young teachers struggle to pay ridiculous mortgages from salaries that have been cut and levied. Incoming graduates now enter the profession on salaries that will not sustain a family.
Teachers also see the effects of the crisis in their classrooms – more children in poverty, more parents unable to pay the many costs involved in “free education” at primary, second and third level.
What we do fully understand however, is that education is key to survival, never mind recovery, from this crisis; and teachers have taken on enormous additional responsibilities, extra hours and are embracing the new literacy and numeracy strategies being rolled out by Department of Education in order to do everything possible to come out of this crisis with an educated workforce.
One wonders about the point of surveying the public on teachers’ understanding of the economy – as if teachers’ only role is to help repay this impossible debt.
A more useful survey might be of the public’s (and Mr Quinn’s) understanding of the impact on children’s life chances if education is further cut or even withdrawn. – Yours, etc,