Ms Bláthnáid Ní Ghréacháin:

In any kind of grass-roots movement the parents will be highly-motivated. That is not to say that parents in other types of schools are not also highly motivated. However, it is the case that the parents may have been involved in establishing and developing the school and this is a help.

On the question about elitism, our organisation is actively trying to encourage more immigrant and minority groups to participate in the system. Our information leaflets on the immersion system of education are translated into seven languages. For the past number of years we have been meeting with representative bodies of these groups. There is a perception that it is not an open system and our statistics prove that this perception has no foundation.