QUESTION & ANSWERS

Q: My son was at college last year but moved to a different course in Trinity this year. We paid the half fees and assumed this was all because of the Minister for Education's decision to phase out fees. Now Trinity says we have to pay the second half. Surely this is wrong? - Dublin father

A: I'm afraid you are going to have to pay the second instalment of the fees. Yes, the Minister announced that only half fees would operate this year and that they would be abolished entirely this year.

However, the no fees or half fees rule only applies to people doing the particular year for the first time.

Because your son has already done a first year, he is not eligible to have his fees (or half fees in this case) paid.

I know this sounds daft to you, particularly as you tell me that you, in fact, paid full fees last year.

The Minister would argue that the fees paid represent only a part of the cost to her of providing a university course, and that the principle that a person gets the fees paid - or a maintenance grant paid if eligible for that - for only one "go" at each higher education year has to be maintained.

I have had dozens of letter about this; parents are at first mesmerised and then furious when they learn the situation. Invariably they think this is some terrible injustice being applied only to them.

The principle in itself is not unsound. It is the fact that it makes it difficult - and sometimes impossible - for people to change tack, recognise that they have made a wrong choice and start over again that I would find most objectionable.

Q: We hope to come back from England to live in south Dublin next year.

We have encountered a lot of difficulty finding a primary school to take our son and daughter. They all say they have waiting lists. Do they not have an obligation to take children living in the area? - London based Irish parent

A: National schools do not have a specific legal obligation to take children from a particular catchment area; in practice, however, the majority of schools take all the students from their immediate area.

In small towns or country areas this is hardly ever a problem.

In Dublin and some other large urban areas, however, traditional catchment areas can overlap, or some national schools will have had a tradition of taking pupils from a diversity of areas.

Song schools also develop a good reputation and become very popular. Or in some other cases the school is attached to a good secondary school and is sought after by pupils from a wide area in order to be well placed to get into the secondary school.

There does seem to be a particular problem in some areas of Dublin and parents who move house or do not have their child's name on a waiting list for even their local national school are finding it difficult to get a place.

have had half a dozen letters from parents moving house in south Dublin who had great difficulty getting their child into the local national school in their new area as well as letters from people based abroad like yourself.

I've also had complaints from people who were effectively told by their local national school that sure, they could afford a private school anyway.

It does seem to me that the situation needs to be clarified, that it needs to be established exactly what obligations a local school has - and that parents should know exactly what their rights are in the matter of access to a primary school.

The only way you're going to get any movement, I'm afraid, is by complaining to the Minister for Education; or you could take the issue up with either the Catholic or Church of Ireland national school management bodies, whichever is appropriate for you.

Q: My daughter says that the rumour is running around her school that the Junior and Leaving Cert exams will run late because of a threatened teachers' strike. We have booked our holidays for the week after her exams. Is this a possibility? - north Dublin parent

A: There is certainly no suggestion at the moment that the exams would run late and I don't really expect that this will occur.

Teachers, while threatening various actions to get their pay and productivity deal amended, are not considering disrupting exams and it seems extremely unlikely that they will do so.

The civil servant clerical workers who process the exams at the exams branch off the Department of Educational in Athlone are, however, in dispute with the Department and they had until recently been boycotting some exam related work.

However, they have agreed to resume exam work on the basis of negotiations going ahead on their pay claim.

As matters stand, there is no threat to the timing of the exams, though it has to be said that the continuance of the exam work depends on their negotiations going successfully.

You can take consolation from the fact that despite industrial action from teachers, post workers and others in the past, the exams have never failed to take place on time.

Q: My son's reading is poor because of bad teaching. The principal has tried to be helpful but he's near retirement and past his best; the board of management does nothing. Can they be sued for negligence like doctors? - very worried parent

A: It would be extremely difficult to prove negligence and - much as you might want to and even be justified in suing - I don't think it would do anything for your son.

I detect a certain note of despair in your letter, but I feel that legal action, though it might sound attractive, will not sort anything out (though it would be an interesting test case if someone did try).

Does the school have a remedial teacher either full time or part time?

Many small national schools can now share a remedial teacher with several other schools, so it is possible your school could do this.

I'd suggest you contact the National Parents Council (Primary) and they will give you some support in pursuin this.

I don't know what your financial circumstances are and I feel guilty about recommending this, but it might be worth your while finding a teacher who would come to your house and work with your son on his reading a few hours per week.

You shouldn't have to do this, but if all else fails, it would probably be a better investment than legal action.

If you can't find anyone locally, the Remedial Teachers' Association, c/o Teachers Centre, Drumcondra, Dublin 9, might be able to suggest someone.

Regardless of your feelings about the board of management, I don't feel they should be let off the hook so easily.

Have you spoken to the parents' representatives on it? They're there to represent you and should be asking questions if something is wrong in the school.

You could make a complaint to the Department of Education; it should be quite specific and well documented.

I'm not saying you will necessarily get quick action, but it does inspect schools and I feel it would have to do something if you complained formally.