Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)

There is a clearcut case for smaller class sizes. Reducing class size naturally alters the classroom environment and creates a better classroom atmosphere where pupils receive more individual attention from their teacher. Teachers have more flexibility to use different teaching techniques, teachers and pupils have more classroom space in which to work, fewer students distract each other, every pupil gets more time to speak, the level of noise in the classroom is reduced and teachers know their pupils better. Class sizes in Ireland are the second highest in the EU. In the programme for Government agreed by Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats in 2002, a clear commitment was made to reducing the pupil-teacher ratio in schools over the next five years. The Government promised to introduce maximum class size guidelines that would ensure the average size of classes for children under the age of nine would be below the international best practice guidelines of 20:1. These developments have not taken place.

There has been no reduction in class sizes in primary schools for the past four years. John Carr, general secretary of the INTO said:

The clock is ticking on this Government's commitment. This Government is running out of time and excuses. The teachers are there, the public support is there and the children are certainly there but where is the political will to implement promises made?

This sums it up. The political will is not there.

I will refer to County Kerry in particular. Figures compiled by the INTO show that more than 2,700 children are taught in classes of 30 pupils or more there. Kerry class sizes are among the largest in Europe, second only to their counterparts in the UK. In reply to a number of recent parliamentary questions, it emerged that 2,789 children in County Kerry are in class sizes of between 30 and 39. A further 9,063 pupils are in classes of between 20 and 29 children. This is unacceptable.

I visited two schools recently and have information on the class sizes from the Holy Family national school in Tralee, where the principal said: "I wish to state that our average class size is 29, and of the 16 classes we have, 11 have 29 or more pupils." This is not acceptable.

In regard to the weighted proposal, I carried out a survey in my constituency recently and 48 schools went to the trouble of responding. The survey shows that 23 schools would lose out considerably if the Minister introduced the new system while only 13 schools would gain any hours.

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