TUI calls for no cutbacks in schools IT

OVER HALF of school computers are now unusable while funding per student lags well behind accepted OECD standards, the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) said yesterday.

The union wants information technology in schools to be exempt from any education cutbacks.

At present, the Republic is close to the bottom of OECD tables in relation to Information and Communications Technology (ICT) facilities in schools.

In Northern Ireland, for example, some €75 million is spent annually on school ICT and all principals and teachers have laptops for educational use. In contrast, the Government is trumpeting a €252 million commitment to the area over the next seven years.

TUI general secretary Peter McMenamin said the provision of necessary ICT infrastructure must be regarded as investment in the country's future.

It must, he said, be excluded from any cutbacks. "With this in mind, we are calling on the Minister for Education and Science to commit to an assurance that ICT will be exempt from any budget cuts in the coming years.

"Education assumes an even greater importance in times of economic turbulence. The Government needs to commit to this fact," he said.

© 2008 The Irish Times

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times