O’Keeffe: Four hours’ teaching seems very little

SOME academics are spending as little as four hours teaching but must start sharing their expertise with students, Education Minister Batt O’Keeffe has claimed.

Following criticisms about Government funding of the third-level sector by university presidents at an Oireachtas committee on Thursday, he said there is a need for more efficient use of the resources given to colleges.

He told RTÉ Radio’s Morning Ireland that some contracts only required lecturers to provide four hours of contact time with undergraduates, and was asked to elaborate at the Irish Primary Principals Network conference yesterday what evidence he had. “I was told by two of them, two very high-profile lecturers. I know that in the institutes of technology, it’s 16 hours [of teaching] plus administration. Four hours seems very little, irrespective of the amount of research that an individual is involved in,” Mr O’Keeffe said.

“I think the undergraduate deserves to get the best people in front of their class, to benefit from their professionalism and expertise and I’d like to see more of that happening,” he said.

In response to criticisms of more than €1.1 million being spent to date on a campus residence for the president of University of Limerick (UL), the minister said he understands no taxpayers’ money has been involved. “A benefactor long associated with UL gave a specific donation of €2 million towards a home for the president of the university. If you have someone who is that benevolent, that person has the right to dictate where that money should be spent,” he said, adding the plans were in place before current president Professor Don Barry took office.

Mr O’Keeffe also revealed his officials are providing school enrolment projections for different geographical areas to help Catholic bishops and religious orders identify areas where they might cede control of schools.

He said it will be down to parents in any local area, where it is proposed that the bishop might divest patronage of a school to the state, whether they want to keep a Catholic school in their community or not.