Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will take up the point Dr. Ryan mentioned. There were two issues I wanted to look at as Chair of the committee, namely, school bullying and leaving certificate reform. That was because of my experiences in both of them. I was taken by a point from Deputy Ó Ríordáin on people approaching the leaving certificate and being afraid. I would say 75% or 80% of students approaching the it are afraid of what is there to face them. When I was growing up, it was about doing the leaving certificate, going to college, getting a pensionable job and living happily ever after. The student of today is totally different from the student five or ten years ago and, most definitely, the student when I did my leaving certificate in 1992.

There is a parental responsibility when we talk about apprenticeships.

Most parents now want their children to go to college and to get a nice comfortable job. They do not want them to be out in the rough and tumble of life. They think that in doing an apprenticeship one never knows what one will end up with afterwards. Professor Hegarty spoke about the nurse becoming the doctor. It is a perfect example. Why should the nurse not become the doctor? There are many other areas where a person doing an apprenticeship can end up teaching the apprenticeship to students. I believe we have to look at it differently.

I have a question for Mr. Whyte and then I will refer back to the other questioners. How does he convince the parents and mentors of the student that apprenticeships are a great track to further education? The only ones that offer that step are the vocational schools - the name of it has gone out of my head - whereby if students do not get enough points, they can do a PLC. Personally, I think they are a little outdated. They are much needed but a little outdated and need to be reformed as well. I am interested to hear Mr. Whyte's response to that. I want to come back to something else on the leaving certificate.