Marie Louise O'Donnell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister asked if we are moving towards a particular ethos. The question asked by the Deputies is a very good one. Should the State be responsible for religious education or should religious education be something independent of the schools? I understand the Protestant teacher training college, Mater Dei and other such colleges are coming under the auspices of DCU, which is a non-denominational university. When questioned about this recently, the college's representatives were delighted to be able to say that people could train to become teachers in whatever way they wanted, in the sense that if they wished to work in a Catholic, Islamic, Jewish or Protestant school one could avail of that tributary, as it were, within the education structure. Am I correct on that, particularly within the new four-year programme for teacher training? That might allay many fears with regard to holding onto a certain ethos yet living within a different type of secular regime.