Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister and note he has made much of the issue of substitution and supervision. As he noted, the union members themselves will decide the outcome in this regard. However, the Minister must also see this issue in the context of the bigger picture, in which implementing junior cycle reform is being discussed. The Minister is aware that Sinn Féin is very supportive of what is proposed by the Department but teachers have real concerns in this regard. They believe themselves to be advocates for students and do not wish to be judge and jury either. This is the reason an issue has arisen in respect of the State examination and how to move to the new model. As the Minister himself stated in response to Deputy McConalogue, we are starting a journey and will take that journey together. However, one cannot start a journey on the wrong foot either and one must consider the current position in post-primary schools.

A number of initiatives have been introduced since the Minister came into office, some of which were highly progressive, such as anti-bullying procedures, new mental health guidelines and transfer options for first-year students. However, one must also consider the additional workload these initiatives placed on teachers and compare that with the cutbacks that have been taking place in the education sector.

The teaching profession is very demoralised. Cutbacks are affecting front line services and additional initiatives and responsibilities are being placed on the teaching profession while at the same we are trying to transform the junior certificate by means of reform of the junior cycle. Many teachers are worried that the necessary resources and training are not being put in place to enable them to carry out this reform.

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