Sir, - I am a Leaving Cert student, and my classmates and I are currently trying to prepare for the most important exam of our lives. We have now lost eight days of our already short school year and still, our courses have to be covered by next June. Are we not under enough pressure without the extra worry about whether or not we will get our courses covered?
I attend the Ursuline Secondary School in Thurles and I think I speak for my classmates when I say that our teachers are extremely dedicated to their profession and are deeply concerned by the present situation. Every day they give up their free time for the benefit of their students. Whether it be for music, sport, drama, debating or simply for advice, they can always be relied upon. It is these very after-school activities, provided by the teachers, that make our schooldays memorable. What reward do our teachers receive for all their efforts? After four years of college, they start on an extremely low rate of pay and it takes 20 years for them to work their way up to the top level. The fact that schools had to close because teachers worked only the hours they were paid for over the past few weeks only serves to highlight the extra duties that go almost unrecognised.
So far the Minister for Education, Dr Woods, has been unwilling to compromise. If everybody else can see that the only way forward is to compromise, why can't our Minister? I appeal to him to take some action to try and solve this dispute as soon as possible. At the end of the day, it is this year's Leaving Cert students who are suffering the most. - Yours, etc.,
Susan Cahill, Kilrush, Co Tipperary.