Mr. Martin Collins:

As I said as part of the opening statement, there is a wider context to Traveller access to education at all levels. We need a multifaceted approach to deal with poor living conditions. Many Travellers are living on the side of the road or on sites with no access to water, electricity or sanitation. Despite those very difficult circumstances, they are making tremendous efforts to get up in the morning and get their children ready for school. That has to be recognised. There is ambition there and a general feeling that education is important. It is valued. It is important to challenge the myth or stereotype that Travellers are uninterested in education and lack ambition. We do not lack ambition; we lack opportunities. Quite often, these opportunities are subject to what one might define as racism at both the individual and institutional level. There has been no acknowledgement of the fact that we have an educational system that promotes an ideology of homogeny. It reflects only one world view and does not encompass respect for cultural or human difference. That is why I commend Senator Kelleher on spearheading the Traveller Culture and History in Education Bill 2018 which will have a profound impact when it is implemented in schools. It should be compulsory. I disagree with Deputy Byrne. Compulsory is compulsory. If that means putting it on a legislative basis, that is what it means. If there is no legislative basis to it, it is not compulsory; it is discretionary. Teachers and principals could decide whether to implement it. That goes back to the point that we need an institutionalised policy response to creating an inclusive educational context for Travellers. We have very sympathetic teachers and principals. We at Pavee Point get invitations all the time, more than the other Traveller groups, to attend schools for a human rights day or to talk with staff. That is not sustainable however. We are an NGO with few resources. As such, we need an embedded culture of respect for human rights and diversity built into our curriculum. That requires anti-racism and intercultural training in the teacher training colleges.

Someone asked me recently about education and how one knows one has made a difference or achieved success. I measure it as follows. Recently, Sindy Joyce received her PhD from the University of Limerick. It was a great achievement for her personally and for her family. Why are we celebrating that, however? Why is it so special? Why has Sindy been on so many chat shows, radio shows and in the media? We should not be at that stage. We should be beyond that to where it is the norm that Travellers graduate from universities with diplomas, degrees and PhDs. It is a very sad indictment of society that we are still at the stage of rejoicing in these types of achievement. While they are, of course, important, we need to move beyond that. Schools are not a very welcoming place. It is a microcosm of the wider society in terms of racism and discrimination.

I will finish on this point. When he was sitting his leaving certificate in Rathoath community college, my own son was called a "knacker" on three different occasions. This was right in the middle of his leaving certificate and he came home very emotional and upset. The school did not deal with it properly. I have always taught my son to be very dignified in fighting racism. The third time, he lashed out. I do not condone it, obviously. My wife and I were summoned to the school by the principal and what came across at the meeting was that the racism was marginalised and got lost. What became the focus was this stereotype of a young, aggressive male Traveller. That became the focus and I found myself getting really frustrated. There are those issues that need to be contended with.

There are two things that need to happen. What we had before or its equivalent must be re-established. We have no mechanism to be involved in consultation on Traveller education policy with the Department of Education and Skills. We need a forum or other mechanism to engage with the Department. We have that lived experience and know what works. We must be allowed to inform policy development and implementation. I was disappointed to hear that there was a meeting last week on the review of the Traveller education strategy to which no Traveller organisation was invited. Certainly, we were not at Pavee Point. It is indicative of the systemic problems we are having with the Department of Education and Skills, in particular.