Dáil debates

Tuesday, 27 May 2008

7:00 pm

Photo of Olivia MitchellOlivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion because this time last year the Government made serious commitments on class sizes and at every single door on which Members knocked they witnessed frustration and fury from parents and teachers. On foot of that campaign, commitments were given and promises were made, and while they were not to the desired extent, they were realistic and achievable but now they have been reneged on. People believed those promises notwithstanding the promises of the previous election regarding the pupil-teacher ratio of 20:1 for nine year olds, which has gone up. The most recent commitment has been reneged on and since the budget we know that the class size commitment will not be met. What disturbs me is that there is no intention of meeting it.

There is a simultaneous clampdown in the school building programme. One cannot increase the number of teachers if rooms are not provided. The Government clearly intends to provide neither teachers nor rooms, which go hand in hand. It is one thing to teach many pupils in a modern, bright, airy, purpose-built classroom but it is another matter to teach the same number in a dilapidated, cramped, isolated prefab. The outcome for children must be sub-optimal.

In my constituency, schools await accommodation for the class sizes they have at present, never mind the promised smaller classes. When Deputies, as public representatives, ask a question about the status of the school on the waiting list we get the same inane answer, that the matter is being considered on an ongoing basis in the context of a multi-annual programme.

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