‘All we’ll be left with is bigger class sizes’

A MOTHER who has seen her son’s reading and maths improve dramatically fears cuts to local schools will mean her daughter does not have the same opportunity.

Annmarie Kelleher from Farranree on the northside of Cork city is one of more than 100 parents who protested yesterday at Scoil Íosagáin, where up to 14 of the 36 teachers could be axed over the next three years under a range of cuts announced in the budget.

Her six-year-old son Cillian has had the benefit of smaller classes, literacy and numeracy initiatives, as well as other advantages of extra staffing since the school was included in the Breaking the Cycle scheme 20 years ago.

But she is worried about the impact the withdrawal of these and other posts will have on future pupils at the school and nearby Scoil Aiséirí Chríost, which she hopes daughter Caoimhe will attend in a few years.

“When Cillian was in pre-school, we were worried because his speech wasn’t great and we thought it would impact on his reading and writing. But since he went on to Scoil Íosagáin, he’s after coming on leaps and bounds,” Annmarie said.

“But Caoimhe is only two and all these cuts to the different schools on the northside will have hit when she goes into junior infants; they’re the ones who will be affected.

“The Governments over the years have put so much into increasing numbers from these so-called disadvantaged areas finishing school and going to college, but all we’ll have now is bigger class sizes and less one-to-one attention and all that will be lost.”

Despite some concessions by Education Minister Ruairi Quinn, Scoil Íosagáin principal Liam Beausang said it still looks set to lose up to 13 of its 36 classroom and support teachers.

A group of principals representing 12 schools on Cork’s northside met Minister of State Kathleen Lynch last Friday to express anger at the likely loss of more than 40 teachers from next year.

“These are on top of cuts already hitting us this year, we lost our resource teacher for Travellers and we have fewer special needs assistants caring for more pupils with disabilities,” Mr Beausang said.

Annmarie has invited parents at other affected schools to another protest outside Scoil Íosagáin on Thursday morning.

“This is the first time I’ve gone out in public about an issue like this but we all have to protect our kids. The Government are really biting off their nose to spite their face because these are the young people who will be needed to keep the economy going in a few years,” she said.