John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)

In my time in school there was corporal punishment. There were always problems with student behaviour and banning corporal punishment did not contribute to them. When I attended school, we lived in fear of many of our teachers. The removal of corporal punishment changed the whole environment and there have been many positive consequences. For example, pupils are now more confident than they were when I was in school. There have been very significant changes but I appreciate that there are many problems arising from student disorder in schools.

Deputy Peter Power's point that indiscipline occurs under some teachers but not under others was interesting. This is why supports and a range of services are necessary. Many and various factors can make a student disruptive, including his or her home environment or a learning problem such as dyslexia. Disruption can be a symptom masking something else. On the factors that lead to disruption, Deputy Enright stated:

. . . the Minister has failed to provide real educational alternatives for young people displaying challenging behaviour. While we must support the right of schools to expel in certain situations, we must also address the needs of those students who do not fit into the school system. A more dramatic response is required. We should examine the establishment of a small network of new schools which would be designed for students with very challenging behaviour, who have been expelled or dropped out from mainstream second level schools.

I would not support this policy.

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