Teachers warn that cuts mean some pupils will be deprived of textbooks

THERE WILL be children at school next week with no textbooks because parents are unable to afford them, teaching bodies have warned. Others fear some secondary school pupils may drop out of school altogether, for the same reason.

John White, general secretary of the Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland (ASTI), said national executive meetings over the past two days had been told there would be pupils next week with no books, due the Government abolition of the school book grant scheme for all but the most disadvantaged schools.

The abolition of the 40-year-old school book grant, which was administered by schools for disadvantaged pupils, was announced in last year’s budget. It will save €7.5 million. The grant is still available to schools designated as disadvantaged under the scheme.

However, Irish National Teachers’ Organisation figures indicate about 50 per cent of the poorest children in the State are outside designated disadvantaged schools.

Mr White said it was as a “very sad situation” that “there will be classes where 25 pupils in a class have the books and two don’t. It is a sad situation for the parents but a very harsh situation for children.

“Parents should be advised that the Vincent de Paul will help but I am also sure schools, strapped as they are already for cash, will do all they can to ensure no child goes without books.”

Schools would do their best this year but it would an “unsustainable” policy direction.

The Joint Managerial Body (JMB) which represents over 400 voluntary secondary schools, said “a quarter of students” in its schools required some assistance with book purchases last year.

It was a “huge concern” for members, said JMB general secretary Ferdia Kelly.

The Department of Education said teachers’ unions are being “selective” in criticising the end of the grant. The unions “conveniently ignore the increases in funding for the day-to-day running of schools announced in last year’s budget”, said a spokesman for Minister for Education Batt O’Keeffe.

The increase of €21 per pupil brings the capitation grant to €200 per pupil. Up until now the capitation grant has been used for the running the school buildings – such as heating, insurance and cleaning costs, said the department. Mr O’Keeffe said schools could now use this for school books if they wished.

Mr Kelly said this was “an insult” to schools and parents. A spokesman for the INTO said parents would “see the Minister’s statement for what it is”.

“Parents know how much fundraising parents do to help with the cost of running schools. It’s simply disingenuous to suggest a school could decide not to pay building insurance, or cleaning costs with its capitation grant and instead buy books”.