Teachers in major push for smaller class sizes

THE Government faces major pressure ahead of next year’s election as primary teachers plan to gather signatures from up to half a million parents in support of their class size campaign.

Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) president Sheila Nunan last night announced a heightened campaign for the coalition to honour its commitment to reduce class sizes to 20 pupils in infant classes.

From next month, the union will ask the parents of the country's 450,000 primary pupils to sign a petition calling on the Government to reduce class size in every school in Ireland. The average class size at primary level is 24 and one-in-four children are in a class of at least 30 pupils.