MINISTER FOR Education Ruairí Quinn was careful not to point an accusing finger at schools when he launched the new discussion document on enrolment policies this week. The paper, he said, was designed to prompt discussion and debate; it is not meant to be prescriptive. That said, it is clear the department is anxious to address deficiencies in current arrangements. Five years ago, its own audit of admission policies underlined a disturbing tendency among a minority of schools to “cherry-pick” the best pupils and to evade their responsibilities to the less academic, to Travellers and to those with special needs.
The situation is probably even worse than the audit suggests as fee paying schools were specifically excluded from the study by the then minister, Mary Hanafin. With honourable exceptions, some fee-paying schools are slow to enrol categories of students seen as “problematic”. And they are not the sole offenders; many Gaelscoileanna operate restrictive admission policy by confining entry to those who are fluent in the language or those with a strong family history of engagement with Irish.
Mr Quinn’s starting point is a good one. All schools have an obligation to operate a fair and transparent admissions policies without fear or favour. But delivering this kind of level playing field is more difficult than it might appear. Parents with a great affinity for their alma mater will want – and expect – to secure a place for their own children in that school. There are also good practical reasons why parents want to place siblings in the same school.
But the rights of other citizens must be respected too. The current waiting list system – based on the “first come first served” principle – discriminates against newcomers, be they foreign nationals or Irish workers relocating from one area of the State to another. The proposal in the discussion document that waiting lists might only be opened in the year prior to actual enrolment makes good sense. Mr Quinn is also correct to signal the possibility of sanctions for schools which refuse to operate fair admissions systems. In such circumstances, it is absolutely right that these schools forfeit control of their own enrolment.
The Minister now plans to open a wider debate on the discussion document with parent, teacher and school management groups before shaping a new regulatory framework at a later stage. It is a challenging task; but the question at the core of his proposal – “can we find a fairer way for all?” – demands an answer.