SCHOOLS WILL have no choice but to send pupils home in January because of the Budget limits on teacher substitution, according to school managers.
At a joint press conference, teachers' unions, school management bodies and parents' groups came together yesterday to highlight how the Budget cuts will result in chaos for schools.
The Post-Primary Education Forum - the lobby group representing teachers, parents and school managers - said school closures appeared inevitable unless the Budget cuts were rescinded.
The Budget had cut teacher substitution for uncertified sick leave and for teachers on official business at second level.
Ferdia Kelly, representing almost 400 school managers in the Joint Managerial Board, said schools will not open in January if the proposal goes ahead.
For health and safety reasons, school boards - who had a duty of care to pupils - could not countenance a situation where children were unsupervised for long periods, he said.
Boards of management would not be able to stand over this risk, he said.
By most estimates, over 800 teaching posts will go because of the increase in class size at second level. Minister for Education Batt O'Keeffe has said only 200 posts will go.
John White, general secretary of the Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland (ASTI), said the cutbacks affect every school.
"Individual schools have contacted the ASTI to say they will lose anything from two to five teachers, thus depriving highly qualified young teachers from practising their profession," said Mr White. "Losing two teachers might seem not so significant to someone in the Department of Finance, but it means that a principal has to factor in the loss of 66 class periods to the timetable for next year; the loss of four teachers means the loss of 118 classes.
"Just consider what this means in terms of the curriculum offered: it will inevitably lead to a diminished education; subjects being dropped, higher and ordinary level classes being combined, and larger classes.''
Declan Glynn of the Teachers' Union of Ireland said the increase in the pupil-teacher ratio will limit subject choice. All pupils will experience larger class sizes and, as a consequence, less one-to-one interaction with their teachers, he said.
The forum said the withdrawal of the school books grant scheme will place further financial pressure on some families. Many families will lose educational support provided by home-school liaison teachers. Other schemes for marginalised pupils will be affected.
"Entire school communities - pupils, families, teachers and school managements - have been dealt a severe blow."
Noel Merrick of the Joint Managerial Board said the changes would have a devastating impact on school life. It could, he said, spell the end of school sports and cultural activities. Field work for Leaving Cert geography students was no longer covered in the new regime, he said.
Rose Tully of the National Parents Council said the decision to defer legislation giving new rights to children with special needs and their parents was reprehensible.
