Jennifer Horgan: The issues that will dominate this week's teachers' conferences
Complaints of inadequate funding dominate, along with caution around artificial intelligence, and a broader consideration of how our education system might best reflect a changing country.
As Ireland’s annual teachers' conferences take place this week, the considers some of the issues dominating Irish education in 2024.
Complaints of inadequate funding dominate, along with caution around artificial intelligence (AI), and a broader consideration of how our education system might best reflect a changing country.
Ireland continues to boast an excellent education system. Most recent results from the Programme for International Student Assessment rank Irish students significantly above the OECD average in all three domains — reading literacy, maths literacy, and science literacy.
This is not where the story ends, however, and challenges continue to affect the sector, the most considerable being a shortage of teachers.
Ahead of last year’s teacher conferences, the Teacher’s Union of Ireland (TUI), representing teachers and lecturers in post-primary, higher and further education, published a survey identifying that 40% of teachers said they did not believe they would be in the profession in 10 years.
The TUI believes the crisis is only worsening, and so it is set to dominate all union conferences. Attendees will hear a demand for increased measures to tackle teacher shortages in schools, exacerbated by cost-of-living increases and the severe scarcity of affordable accommodation.
The Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO), the union for primary teachers and principals, asserts the new pay deal, the Building Momentum Agreement, has resulted in teachers suffering a reduction in real pay due to rising costs in the Republic. They call for a type of ‘London Weighting’ to help with teacher scarcity in Dublin and other urban areas.
Other suggested solutions include shortening the teacher training course, loosening Teaching Council registration, and expanding teacher courses to serve more rural parts of the country.
At secondary school level, some suggest the introduction of planning hours for teachers of Leaving Cert subjects during the school day.
The Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland (ASTI) calls for the removal of the 33 hours of unpaid Croke Park hours, and more flexibility for teachers. They ask that post-holders, those with responsibilities beyond the classroom, receive timetabled hours to fulfil their duties within the school day.
Conversations about pensions and a restoration of pre-2013 conditions continue. More full-hour contracts are needed for teachers joining the profession, says the TUI, alongside more incentives and easier processes for teachers returning from abroad.
Earlier this month, principals of primary schools were vociferous in their opposition to a new allocation model which removes complex needs as a criterion for support in their schools. They asked for an opportunity to share more accurate information with the department, beyond standardised test results.
However, the department responded to the petition shared by the Irish Principals’ Forum by questioning the accuracy of the document, saying some signatories were not principals, or were names collected from unaffected schools.
The forum shared disappointment at its response. Inclusion Ireland, and autism charity AsIAm also warned against the new allocation model. The department then said it removed the criterion on complex needs over concerns relating to data provided by the HSE.
Beyond disputes over the new model, children with additional needs are losing teacher time as a knock-on effect of the recruitment and retention crisis.
In a survey conducted by the INTO last November, two thirds of primary schools responded they had used a special education teacher (SET) to cover a teacher absence. Some 61 schools indicated they had used a SET for more than 20 days by the end of the first month of the school year.
The INTO is calling for increased supports from outside services and from the inspectorate in managing inclusive education, and for a simplified process in accessing supports.
A survey released by the INTO shows 58% of respondents have experienced physical aggression in school. They link this to a paucity of supports for teachers and wrap-around services for pupils. A total of 440 participants completed the survey.
“The findings point to a distressing reality faced by teachers and highlight the need for comprehensive policy reforms in education and health support services," it said.
At secondary level, ASTI also seeks improved therapeutic services for students, and a formalisation of the role of coordinating special educational needs in schools.
The TUI points to a more general underfunding issue in education, highlighting that out of 36 countries in the OECD, none spends a lower proportion of national wealth (GDP) on education than Ireland.
At second level, this is more pronounced, where at 1%, the spend for second level is just half that of the OECD average. This is resulting in large class sizes, over-stretched pastoral support systems for students and education facilities which are often unsuited to modern and inclusive teaching and learning.
The teacher conferences coincide with Holy Communion and Confirmation season. With far fewer Irish families practising their faith, conversations continue in the media and online about faith formation in schools.
The INTO suggests surveying all members on the following questions: Should faith formation education take place in primary schools? Should primary school education in Ireland have secular or religious patrons?
It plans to publish the result by June 2024. It also proposes the removal of the requirement for a religious certificate to teach in Irish schools.
Under the new primary curriculum, the amount of time dedicated to faith formation is set to reduce from two and a half hours to two hours a week. Critics believe more needs to be done to protect the rights of non-Catholic children during school hours.
At present, 89% of primary schools have a Catholic ethos, which gives them a legal right to teach faith formation within their schools. About 5% have a multi-denominational ethos and the remaining approximately 6% of primary schools have a religious ethos other than Catholic, mainly Church of Ireland.
The current Programme for Government commits to improving parental choice by meeting a target of delivering 400 multidenominational primary schools by 2030. Groups such as Education Equality argue the existing target is not enough and will still leave about 88% of schools under religious patronage.
In Census 2022, over 3.5 million people living in the State reported their religion was Roman Catholic, accounting for 69% of the population. The number of people who reported having no religion increased to more than 14% of the population, an increase of 63% since the 2016 census, and of 187% since the 2011 census.
The Genesis Report (data collected in 2019) shows a majority of parents at primary (56%) and secondary (66%) do not choose schools because of their religious ethos.
One of the biggest conversations in education in recent months relates to artificial intelligence (AI), technology, and its impact on assessment and learning.
Education Minister Norma Foley launched a new plan last November to discourage parents from buying smartphones for primary school children.
Concerns remain high that smartphone use is impacting sleep and mental health and exposing young children to the risk of cyberbullying and sexual content.
The minister released practical guidelines to help facilitate charters between families and schools, as were already being developed in Wicklow and Waterford earlier last year.
Schools continue to grapple with the issue of intrusive technology, however, particularly at secondary, where most children carry phones into school.
Research by Red C, carried out on behalf of ASTI, found one in five teachers experience some form of cyberbullying, and are often subject to receiving angry messages from students or seeing them posted online.
Teachers report being recorded without their consent, and having private information shared online. Although the majority of cyberbullying against teachers is reportedly perpetrated by students, 20% is carried out by parents.
The research is based on a survey of 1,920 ASTI members.
AI presents a different challenge, particularly at senior cycle, in relation to a changing assessment model.
Some 22% of teacher respondents from the same ASTI survey say they use it in their classrooms and nearly a third use it to prepare lessons. However, over 80% have concerns about its impact on teaching and learning.
The TUI calls on all stakeholders to ensure AI does not outpace education.
In November of last year, Ms Foley shelved plans to introduce teacher-based assessment across Leaving Cert subjects as part of a revised senior cycle programme, identifying the advent of AI technology for the change in direction.
Seven subjects, including the sciences and two entirely new courses, will contain some additional component outside of the final exam, however. This will not be marked by teachers as originally planned and will instead be sent to the State Examinations Commission (SEC).
Ms Foley denied the assessment change was due to union opposition, which has always been considerable.
A key motion at the ASTI annual convention next week will seek to explore the potential impact of AI on Leaving Cert additional components (such as project work) and their assessment in these seven subjects. There are concerns 40% of Leaving Cert subject grades will be allocated to these additional components in redeveloped or new Leaving Cert subjects.
The new primary curriculum is currently the subject of public consultation, and much media attention. In its current draft, students will spend more time on foreign languages, with an increased focus on Stem (science, technology, engineering, and maths) and opportunities to engage with a wider arts curriculum, including dance and creative media.
A concern over a lack of adequate funding pervades the primary sector. The focus on Stem is welcomed but schools worry about implementing the changes without adequate funding.
The INTO is calling for funding for the implementation of the primary maths curriculum and demands schools be fully supported with in-person training prior to and during the implementation of any new curricula.
It also calls for training and resourcing of the new modern foreign language programme, as outlined in the primary curriculum framework. There are also widespread concerns about a lack of funding in relation to digital technologies in classrooms.
As per the new primary curriculum, alongside a reduction in the time given to faith formation, Irish teaching will reduce from three and a half hours to three in English-medium schools.
An increased focus on wellbeing will include relationships and sex education. Children will learn about puberty in third or fourth class, as opposed to fifth or sixth class. This will likely cause controversy, but defenders of the move say children are starting primary school later and developing earlier.
At secondary, the TUI welcomes Norma Foley’s announcement that continued professional development will be provided before the implementation of new senior cycle subjects, and sample papers will also be available to teachers before the implementation of the senior cycle, with specifications incorporating significant scaffolding to aid teachers.
Stakeholders seem pleased with the recent rollout of free schoolbooks across primary schools. In Budget 2024, funding of €67m was set to provide free schoolbooks and classroom resources for Junior Cycle pupils in recognised post-primary schools for the upcoming school year 2024/25.
However, The National Association for Principals and Deputy Principals reports over 80% of its members lack the necessary supports and information to deliver the scheme by the start of the new school year.
Issues relating to school buildings continue to hit headlines. In Budget 2024, the allocation of €940m for 2024 will facilitate a continued rollout of urgently needed school building projects.
This includes the continued progression of building projects currently at construction — 40 new buildings, and about 260 school extensions — all expected to be completed in 2024 or early 2025.
Reactions on the ground are lukewarm, however, with school communities saying their current conditions are not fit for purpose. There are associated enrolment pressures in Kildare, north Wicklow and parts of Dublin, Cork, and Galway.
The Department of Education has acknowledged "capital funding pressures" that arose in 2023.
