Over to You

Are you interested in one week's work placement in The Irish Times? Transition Year students can learn first-hand about the workings of this newspaper if their submission is published in Media Scope's weekly Over to You.

Just send us a 200-word piece on a media-related topic - if it's published, the placement is yours.

Michelle Burke, St Louis Community School, Kiltimagh, Co Mayo.

Nurses, junior doctors, Aer Lingus baggage handlers, train drivers, taxi drivers . . . . And now our beloved teachers are at it. They are seeking a 30 per cent pay hike, which to me is outlandish.

And so far we've missed out four days of school, with the threat of many more to come.

This action will have dire consequences for all students, and Leaving Certs in particular, as exam results determine their whole future.

I'm disappointed in teachers. I never thought they would go so far as to close down the schools and hold exam students to ransom to achieve their selfish aims.

The teachers are claiming credit for creating the Celtic Tiger economy. Will they also accept responsibility for the exam results of 2001 if this situation is allowed to continue?

Aoibheann McCann, St Vincent's School, Dundalk, Co Louth

Isn't it ironic, as Ireland stirs from its slumber regarding the terrible state of our environment, that we set our new concerns aside and continue to wrap our gifts in large amounts of pretty, plastic coated paper, only to scrunch it up into bundles of discarded rubbish on Christmas morning.

Shouldn't we at least attempt to conjure up other ways of presenting our gifts, without adding to the ever-growing waste problem? Perhaps we could re-use decorative bags every festive season and actually recycle them with the Christmas party bottles and beer cans.

To further add to the problem we insist on decking the halls with cheap, gaudy decorations that last a mere month; on perusing the ultimate copy of the Argos catalogue; and what would be the meaning of Christmas without the all important bumper issue of the RTE Guide?

If society really desires a caring Christmas spirit, maybe this year we could spare some extra care for our precious environment.

Write to media scope by posting your comments to Newspaper in the Classroom, The Irish Times, 1116 D'Olier Street, Dublin 2, or faxing them to (01) 679 2789. Be sure to include your name, address and school, plus phone numbers for home and school. Or you can use the Internet and e-mail us at mediapage@irishtimes.ie

media scope is a weekly media studies page for use in schools. Group rates and a special worksheet service (see `faxback', right) are available: FREEPHONE 1800-798884.

media scope is edited by Harry Browne.