Fianna Fail says it would spend more on early education

A FIANNA Fail government would increase spending on early education and primary schools at expense of other education the party promised yesterday.

In a position paper published yesterday it proposes that rural disadvantage should be tackled by providing all one teacher schools with a second teacher. This would ensure that the education of rural religious minorities continued to be catered for.

The proposals come as new Department of Education projections show the primary school population will drop by an average 11,000 a year over the next six years. The trend due to rapidly falling births means that some 350 primary teachers will become surplus each year unless other work is found for them.

Last year, 491,000 children enrolled in primary schools. By the turn of the century, this is expected to fall to 421,000, the most dramatic shrinkage of the Irish education system ever.

In recent years, surplus teachers have been retained in the system by reducing the pupil teacher ratio or redeploying them in other areas, such as remedial.

Fianna Fail says it is concerned about the rising number of one teacher schools because of the demographic trends and their negative impact on the quality of education and rural life.

There are now 163 one teacher schools, mostly in rural areas or a catering for religious minorities 42 under Protestant management. The cost in extra salaries of providing a second teacher would be £2.5 million a year, Fianna Fail claims. This figure is based on teachers earning an average £16,000 annually.

A teacher in a one teacher school teaches all eight grades, provides lunchtime supervision for up to 28 pupils and carries out administrative work.

"It is difficult to see how a single teacher can provide the range of subjects and other services which are required for a proper primary education in today's world," says Mr Micheal Martin, Fianna Fail's education spokesman.

Mr Martin says two teacher schools have a "constant fear" that a drop in pupil numbers would cause their reduction to one teacher status and lead to a fall in education quality. However, in government, Fianna Fail would guarantee that this would not happen.

He accused the Minister for Education, Ms Breathnach, of heightening fears of rationalisation through the establishment last month of the school accommodation commission. "We believe a policy motivated by a desire to close schools in rural Ireland is wrong and we call on Ms Breathnach to clarify the role of the commission in this regard and to guarantee that small, rural schools are not facing closure."

A recent report from the Combat Poverty Agency found that 16 per cent of the school population could be regarded as disadvantaged. It also estimated that 60 per cent of the disadvantaged live in rural areas and are poorly served by existing aid schemes.

Fianna Fail says it is "examining" the proposal made in the report that the class sizes of junior classes in primary schools be reduced to 15 pupils.

The Department figures show that the number of pupils in second level education is expected to continue rising until 1997/98, when the decline at primary level will begin to show. Enrolments currently stand at 374,300 and are projected to increase to 380,800 in 1997/98. By 2000, the second level population is expected to fall to 368,100.