Sir, - Fintan O'Toole's article (November 28th) on the current dispute between the ASTI and the Government asserts that "the key factor in the performance of Irish schools has been the quality of the teaching" and that "once teaching ceases to be a respected profession it is hard to undo the damage subsequently".
In a very real sense, this is what the current dispute is about. Irish society has made tremendous advances over the past 10 years. All of us benefit from this but foremost are the young people leaving our education system who no longer have to emigrate to undertake unskilled work in England or the US. However, we now must learn how to manage this success. Part of managing the success is ensuring that our public education system is a well-resourced one which offers an holistic education experience, grounded in humane values, which endeavours to allow all our young people to realise their potential. Market forces, "red in tooth and claw" unleavened by a strong sense of community and social solidarity will diminish the ability of the education service to meet the needs of all pupils. It is in this context that society should realise that teachers need recognition. Of course, teachers do not expect to attain the salary levels of the dot.com elite. However, they do expect salaries which are comparable to those of other graduates. This is not now the case and if we wish to save teaching from the slow decline which Mr O'Toole fears, the present dispute must be resolved in a fair and reasonable manner. A long attritional dispute, which is now possible, given the intransigence of the Government, will not serve the long term interests of either Government or society. - Yours, etc.,
Charlie Lennon, General Secretary, ASTI, Winetavern Street, Dublin 8.