The proposal from the group representing engineers whereby graduates would be paid British-style "hello money" to attract them to the teaching profession has not received the attention it deserves. The Institution of Engineers in Ireland (IEI) is calling for extra allowances for mathematics and science teachers after new figures showed that only six maths graduates went into teacher-training last year.
The IEI believes the introduction of the British-system - in which graduates in certain disciplines receive an additional allowance of about 4,000 - could help boost interest in science and maths among students. It might also help to widen the knowledge base. At present, many schools do not provide physics and chemistry because there are no teachers available to take these subjects.
Certainly, radical action is needed. This year saw a continuing fall-off in interest among Leaving Certificate students in science subjects There is also growing evidence of declining student achievement in mathematics and science. More than 22 per cent of this year's students failed ordinary level biology, one of the highest failure rates recorded for any subject in State examinations.
The IEI proposal has drawn a distinctly cool response from the teaching unions as it would break the common pay scale for all teachers, primary and secondary. The teaching unions have a point; would it be right to say that mathematics or physics were more important than English or history? Mr John MacGabhann, the TUI president, makes another perceptive point: what would happen if a scarcity of teachers emerged in other subjects? Would other "special" allowances also be necessary?
For all that, there are sound economic reasons which would appear to justify the IEI plan. Clearly, the economy needs a constant flow of quality engineering and science expertise if it is to move forward. It is to be hoped that the Minister for Education, Dr Woods, will give the IEI proposal the attention it deserves.
In the interim, there is much practical work that can be done to boost interest in science. The introduction of practicals at Leaving Certificate level would bring new life to the subject; the Republic remains one of the few modern states with no practical component in science exams. As an Oireachtas committee noted last year "this helps to kill off the excitement of science". The Minister might also invest even more heavily in science laboratories. Some progress has been made through his recent £12 million initiative. But there remain many school science laboratories which would scarcely meet health standards.