Enda Kenny appeals to teachers to call off one-day strike

Taoiseach Enda Kenny has appealed to teachers to call off their one-day strike planned for tomorrow.

“The strike is avoidable,’’ he said. “The only ones who are going to suffer here are the children, the students, and I would ask at this late stage that the teachers would take that on board.’’

Mr Kenny told the Dáil Minister for Education Jan O’Sullivan had made it perfectly clear, on more than one occasion, she was quite willing to engage further with teachers on the issue.

He said it was not a case of the minister implementing by diktat former minister Ruairí Quinn’s original proposal. She had made quite a deal of compromise and changed the nature of the first series of proposals.

“The changes being made, and the assessment methods being proposed now by the Minister, have taken into account what the teachers did say,’’ Mr Kenny added.

Assessment

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin said the strike was fundamentally caused by the Government's original approach to junior cycle reform, particularly the assessment dimension.

He said Mr Quinn ignored recommendations on the issue and the views of teachers.

“Such a strike does impact on students, particularly examination students,’’ he said.

Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams said learning and education were one of the pillars of any society.

“The teachers do not want to go on strike, but that is what is going to happen tomorrow and there will be great disruption for students, particularly, their families and teachers,’’ he added.

Mr Adams said Sinn Féin broadly supported the reforms brought forward by the Government, except the assessment issue.

The Minister, he said, was imposing “a veto’’ that teachers must assess 40 per cent of their students’ work. While the party supported the move away from rote learning, the intransigence on the issue made the strike inevitable.