Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate the opportunity to speak on this matter.

I congratulate the Minister for his initiative. We need to be radical when it comes to education. Far too often, there has been a sense of "Sure, it is grand". It is important that we do this.

There is a considerable gap between the political system and the staffroom and that gap is often filled with ill-informed or ill-advised media comment about what teachers do and their pay structures and responsibilities. In any reform package, it is impossible to achieve anything in education without bringing teachers with us. That disconnect, which I see far too often between the staffroom and the political system, is something of which we must be wary and which we must address. We must empower teachers to implement the reform packages that we propose.

It is so important to bring teachers and students with us. I undertook a tour of my constituency and spoke to students in Manor House in Raheny, in Holy Faith, Clontarf and in Holy Faith, Killester, in Chanel College in Coolock, in Dominican College, Drumcondra and in Mount Temple. I am quite sure when I was speaking to them they were not sure whether I would address their concerns in Leinster House, but I am doing so. All those students, to whom I wanted to speak because they were the ones who most recently sat the junior certificate, were supportive of the 60:40 balance but had concerns about the restricted subject choice which was the original proposal. The latter has been addressed by the Minister, and I welcome that.

I also spoke to a number of schools' staff about it and I am slightly alarmed about the disconnect between the staffroom and the political system. When I talked to staff about how they feel, I heard they feel completely under appreciated. They feel the sense of disconnection, a sense of disempowerment and a sense of not being appreciated for the hard work they do. They are asked to drive and be empowered by reform packages that come along, and yet they feel that their vital role in education is not being appreciated. I asked why they feel this. Sometimes they blame the Department, but they also blame society and media comment.

I make this appeal to those who are concerned about education, to parents, students and anybody who feels strongly about the power of learning, and learning for its own sake which is at the core of the new reform package, that one cannot ask a teacher to engage in this process if one strips away the goodwill on which every school runs.

Anybody who knows anything about education knows that schools run on goodwill. If one interferes with that sense of goodwill, it effectively interferes with a lot.

Staff have told me of their concerns about tampering with the relationship they cherish as advocates for their students. The new assessment model is a concern for them. They are also concerned about a potential dumbing down of the junior certificate. I do not agree with their sentiments but I do know their sentiments are real. If they feel the new assessment model will change the vital relationship they have with their students as advocates for students' advancement, and if they feel there is a potential dumbing down of certain subjects, including history and geography, we have a body of work to do. We cannot ask teachers to engage in this process, take on the work of reforming the junior certificate, change the model of education in schools and bring in short courses if they feel at the outset that there is a disconnect.

I ask the Minister and the Department to re-engage with the secondary school system by whatever means necessary. Teachers' unions and the Government have a responsibility for this matter. I believe there is cross-party support in this House for what the Minister is trying to achieve. We have a responsibility to encourage and empower teachers to bring these issues forward. If one starts off with a belief that this is not achievable, however, one will not believe in it. We cannot ask anybody to implement something they do not fundamentally believe in. I believe in what the Minister is doing and I know the Minister and the Government believe in it also. Across this House, people are accepting the bona fides of what the Government is trying to do on this matter. We cannot expect teachers to believe in it if we do not address their concerns, but we will do so. We must take those concerns seriously and work with teachers to reform the junior certificate for the benefit of students, which is at the core of what we are trying to achieve.

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