A chara, – A report in The Irish Times entitled "Children in wealthy areas get more special education teaching" (August 5th, 2013) plays a large part in explaining the discrepancy in educational attainment. The article referenced a report the Department of Education itself conducted that year, which found that children in Terenure were getting more special education teaching hours than children in Darndale. The reason for the discrepancy in provision is that in middle-class schools, psychological assessments paid for privately by parents are fed into the public education system. These assessments are used in determining resource hours and staffing allocated to a school. And so the gulf widens.
In the inner-city school where I work, we are allocated a restricted number of assessments per year and we have no parents who can afford to pay for private assessments, which can cost between €400 and €600. We struggle to provide adequate teaching time for children who score under the tenth percentile in standardised tests. We hear stories of schools in leafier suburbs where children at the 35th or even 63rd percentiles may be receiving extra teaching support. It is incredibly frustrating to be so under-resourced, but more so to read reports stating that no significant change has occurred.
All children should have equal access to educational resources, irrespective of parental wealth. – Is mise,
NIAMH MURRAY,
Islandbridge,
Dublin 8.