Time for schools to offer choice to parents

IT’S time we paid more than lip service to parental choice in education.

The reality is that for most there is no choice in the type of primary school they would like their children to attend.

This is not a criticism of the current providers who have inherited a system largely unchanged since the 19th century and who have welcomed newcomers.

It is only in recent years that new providers came on the scene and we have witnessed the development of multidenominational schools under the Educate Together banner, Steiner Schools, Muslim Schools, Community National Schools, and the growth of gaelscoileanna.

Yet they still represent a tiny percentage of the country’s 3,200 national schools. Indeed, it is remarkable that 96% of our schools are under Christian denominational patronage — a figure uniquely high in the developed world.

The Government believes that the current provision does not reflect the need for greater diversity and that there is pent-up demand for choice around the country.

The issue is being addressed in expanding areas where increasingly parents can choose between schools of a different patron or ethos. But what about more settled areas with a stable population and sufficient numbers of school places but no choice of patron or ethos and yet a demand for diversity?

The State cannot always afford to meet this demand with new schools, even if it were socially desirable to do so. However, one way to achieve this diversity is through the divesting or transfer of patronage from one existing provider to another. This was one of the issues examined by the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary Sector which I set up last year. I pay tribute to the forum’s advisory group John Coolahan, Caroline Hussey, Ms Fionnuala Kilfeather for the work they have done in presenting us with a roadmap for change.

I have decided to commence the process of divesting (or transfer) of patronage immediately. Surveys of parents will be conducted in 44 areas of stable population. Parents will be the key drivers of this change. Existing patrons will then be required to respond within a definite timeframe. There will be local sensitivities involved in choosing one school over another for divesting and these will have to be addressed by the patrons. All the indications so far are that they will be generous in their response to the needs of the parents.

Parents will be involved in the wider discourse about the nature and characteristics of the inclusive school. The forum report notes there are 1,700 standalone schools which are at least 3km from their nearest neighbouring school. In these cases, provision of diversity through a choice of school under another patron is not an option.

The group recommends the development of a protocol to protect the rights of all children in a school. The protocol and related issues will be the subject of a white paper to be published next year. I am pleased the National Parents Council (Primary) has agreed to co-operate in the preparation of a leaflet for parents to inform them of this unfolding debate. I hope that parents and parents’ associations will make submissions which will be considered when we prepare our white paper.

Parents have been to the forefront in the remarkable growth in gaelscoileanna. On foot of the forum report I intend to proceed with an analysis of the start-up and growth experienced in existing Irish medium schools. This analysis will inform the evaluation of future applications for the development of further schools.

Our primary school population is still growing with increasing numbers of pupils from different backgrounds. On a visit to a school in north Co Dublin this week, I was told there were 26 nationalities, and 15 different home languages among the young children in that school alone.

Our primary schools provide a wonderful environment for children to grow and learn. I have no intention of changing that experience for children but want to ensure parents have real choice in the schools they send their children to and that their children are all made to feel part of their school community.

It is just over 180 years since the birth of the primary school system in this country and the social, political, demographic, religious and cultural landscape has changed dramatically since then. It’s time schools’ structure reflected that change.