Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister's decision and I commend Deputy Thomas Byrne on keeping the pressure on him. It is essential. Students of history will know who Sir Humphrey is. "Special core status" sounds very Sir Humphrey-esque, but it is either core or it is not. The Minister must clarify for once and for all whether it is core. If it is core, we welcome that, but if it is not, the Minister should be honest, upfront, learn from history and spell it out. It has to be core because of the interest that exists. All Deputies toured national schools in 2016 and saw the interest of younger pupils. Once they were motivated by a topic they engaged with it online and with the multimedia aspect.

If we are to assume that it is core, the new curriculum must not just be wedged into the current course but embedded in it. It must not be an add-on, but timetabled properly. The content must be relevant. There must be core issues of content for every school in terms of our national history, European history and world history so people will learn lessons from it and from the mistakes of history. There must also be local history. Students need to get an understanding of local history, local placenames and local legends. That will provide variety and generate an interest. It will give students a stake in the history of their communities, their families' history and the history of their settlement.

This is a very important decision. History is a foundation subject. It grounds all of us and the lack of an understanding of history and the lessons of history is a key reason for much of the discourse in politics around the world today. History teaches us a great deal, so this decision is welcome. I welcome the fact that the Minister stood up for it, but he should be upfront and straight about whether it is core or not.

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