DOCTORS are prescribing teenagers as young as 14 sleeping pills to cope with exam stress, according to the chairman of the Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children.

PARENTS have called on the Government to reverse a policy that means repeat Leaving Certificate students pay more than twice the fee charged to first-time candidates.

TEACHERS have agreed times for meetings with parents but must wait until a row on the standardised school year is resolved before receiving their benchmarking pay increases.

STUDENTS have rejected calls for parents to check pictures on their children’s mobile phones but accept all phones should be banned from the classroom.

A PARENTS’ group has accused the Department of Education and Science of “slowly squeezing the life out of voluntary Catholic schools” by not providing more funding for the sector.

THE Government should continue to fund an umbrella body for second-level parent groups rather than funding each organisation individually, a major review has recommended.

PARENTS have expressed concern over schools passing on information about students to banks or other financial institutions.

Education Correspondent

Education Correspondent

PARENTS have called for a review of the Leaving Certificate marking system, because of wide differences between results at higher level and ordinary level.

A PARENTS’ group wants a cap on the number of Irish language students bean an tís can accept in their homes.

PARENTS have accused secondary schools of keeping refundable charges for registering students each year.

FAMILIES will have to re-mortgage their homes if third-level fees are reintroduced, the Consumers’ Association of Ireland has warned.

TÁNAISTE Mary Harney last night reiterated her opposition to the reintroduction of college fees, saying the measure was not part of the Government’s Programme for Government.

UNIONS and civil servants hold too much control over the education system, the head of the country’s vocational sector warned parents over the weekend.

A PARENTS group is to take a court challenge against the Education Act, because they claim it does not support their role as the main educators of children.

The Catholic Schools Parents Association has expressed its opposition to proposals to hold parent-teacher meetings at night.

FREE Catholic education could become a thing of the past if trusts replacing religious orders who pull out of hundreds of secondary schools are not run properly.

SECONDARY school parents’ groups want the Government to give them more independence to air their views on issues affecting students after a split in their umbrella organisation.

BUDDING freshers were out of bed early yesterday morning waiting for a second round college offer, and 304 early birds had accepted their course on-line by lunchtime yesterday.

BUDDING freshers were out of bed early yesterday morning waiting for a second round college offer, and 304 early birds had accepted their course on-line by lunchtime yesterday.