Swap school bags for laptops, says IBEC

SCHOOL bags should be replaced by laptop computers for all second level students within five years, according to employers organisation IBEC.

In a major education policy document, it also proposes a ban on part-time work for Junior and Leaving Certificate students and compulsory foreign languages in primary schools.

IBEC said greater access was needed to technology as a learning tool in primary and second level schools. Just over one-in-five second level classrooms has a computer, and most are located in computer rooms to which student access is often limited.

“We are proposing that Government and industry work to achieve a target that every second level student will have a laptop within five years,” the document said.

The IBEC report acknowledges the valuable experience to be gained from part-time work but recommends members should not employ second level students during exam years. Recent research has shown rising numbers of teenagers are working part-time and their exam results are suffering as a result.

The policy document also proposes more dialogue with guidance counsellors to inform them of employers’ needs and implementation of the Task Force on Physical Sciences report to increase participation in science and technology subjects.