THE Minister for Education has announced that she will amend the Education Bill to "reflect" the advisory role of the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) in relation to the school curriculum.
Ms Breathnach, speaking at the annual conference of the National Parents Council Primary in Kilkenny, said parents, as primary educators of their children under the Constitution, had "a central part to play in the development of the curriculum".
However, her promised amendment will also please the teacher unions. One of their many complaints about the Education Bill was its failure to give statutory recognition to the NCCA, which is highly regarded for its work in reforming the curriculum.
The absence of any mention of the NCCA in the original Bill was seen to put it at a disadvantage as an advisory body to the Minister when compared to the newly powerful school inspectorate.
Ms Breathnach said parents had an especially key role to play in sensitive areas like Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE). This school year has seen the final preparations for the introduction of this programme".
The programme is due to be introduced in all schools next September.
The Minister said she would shortly launch an RSE information pack, and an information booklet on RSE would be made available to parents throughout the State.
There have been complaints from parents that - apart from national teacher and parent bodies and a limited number of teachers who have been sent on training courses - few people have any idea what the new RSE programme contains.
"Let me assure you this evening that all materials relating to the relationships and sexuality education programme will be available to parents in their schools so that full and adequate planning and consultation between parents, teachers and school management can take place on the implementation of the programme in every school," Ms Breathnach told the conference.