Irish Teacher: This is why The Department of Education is a bully

This is a story of a deaf boy who is being bullied. It’s also the story of a father who is not afraid to stand up to the bullies. Andrew Geary, a Garda sergeant of 24 years, confides that he nearly died in service nine years ago but rushed to put his uniform back on to serve his country and all its citizens. Now we need to serve his son, writes Jennifer Horgan.

 Jennifer Horgan, Diary of an Irish Schoolteacher. "We need to stand up to the bullies and call out bullying when we see it. Especially when the bully is the Department of Education."

Raymond Heaslip’s father made a plea at his son’s funeral. He asked young people to speak up when they witness bullying. He’d just lost his son Eden, his eighteen-year-old boy, and yet he channelled his remaining energy into protecting other possible victims – showing immeasurable courage amid immeasurable grief.

There’s a great irony when us teachers take up the fight against bullying in our classrooms. The truth is that the Irish education system is a bully, and every one of us who goes along with it, pretends not to see it, is part of the problem. In our silence, we position ourselves on the bully’s side.