Sir, – Gerry Foley insists fee-paying schools “should not be used as a vehicle for diverting attention away from the much bigger issues in Irish education”, issues that must be tackled for the good of our society (Education Today, September 20th).
Surely, however, there is no bigger issue in our striving for a better society than to ask why children, through no fault of their own, are afforded different opportunities in a State-funded education system because of their families’ income? – Yours, etc,
Sir, – Gerry Foley delivers a nice sophistry with his contention that fee-paying schools, whose teachers are paid by the State, actually save the State money. This argument is based on the theory that parents are entitled to a certain amount of education money per child, and they should be entitled to “spend” that money wherever they choose. This is nonsense, of course; the State provides a free education system. If parents should reject that educational system as inadequate, they should pay the full cost of private education themselves. It is not just looking the gift horse in the mouth, but asking for a portion of the value of the gift horse in cash to be spent elsewhere.
George Hook, meanwhile, does not seem to have any clear point other than that he likes the fact that fee-paying schools are difficult to access, because he is in favour of elitism (Education Today, September 20th).
The State cannot afford to subvent an alternative educational system for the wealthy. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – Gerry Foley has laid out the facts and the issues very clearly and there is really no validity in the notion that the Government is giving something to private schools that they are not entitled to or that it in some way takes away from children in non-fee paying schools.
Unfortunately, in this world of soundbites and catchy headlines, it may do little to appease those who are taken in by the much-peddled notion that someone else is getting something that they are not getting. The absolute truth is that there are very many well-off people whose children attend non-fee-paying schools. For all sorts of reasons, they see no value in paying for private schools; and if they are correct, then they are gaining financially and the parents paying fees are foolish.
In a liberal society, everyone is free to choose. However, what is indicative of a growing malaise in our society is that many people are not content with just being free to make their own choices, it has become important to them that they take away other people’s right to choose. The thinly veiled venom in some of the recent commentary is indicative of an increasing lack of tolerance and is the very antithesis of the liberal agenda that such commentators and letter writers claim to be supporting. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – It might be timely to compare the cost of smoking 30 cigarettes a day for a year to the cost of paying fees in a private school for a year. Both come in at about €4,700. It’s interesting which choice attracts the most opprobrium! – Yours, etc,