October 2011

INTO in the Media

The family way - Woman's Way
30th October 2011
Question: My child’s sten score on the Micra T English test went down from 6 last year to 5 this year, should I be worried?
Answer: Peter Mullan, Media Officer with the Irish National Teachers' Organisation says
"In a word, No. Tests like the Micra T are standardised tests, used in all primary schools in Ireland. "It measures how well a child does in English reading or maths and compares this to other children in the country in the same class. There are many ways results can be given to parents. One of these is using a STen score."...Any test result can be affected by how children feel on test day. They may be tired, worried or excited. A test result is only one indication of your child's achievement and one test alone does not give the full picture. So there is no point in preparing children for these tests...

Final effort to Trap votes for the Cliffs - Clare Champion
28th October 2011
...Last week, Taoiseach Enda Kenny endorsed the Cliffs' campaign to become one of the New 7 Wonders and INTO president, Noreen Flynn travelled to the Cliffs with children from Liscannor National School to show her support...

Donegal NW Branch INTO - Tirconaill Tribune
27th October 2011
Donegal NW Branch INTO We are currently drawing up a list of fully qualified teachers who are available for any substitute work, which may arise in the branch area. If interested in having your name, included, please text your name, qualification and contact details to Helen Sweeney (Branch Secretary) at 086 0558255 Or email: portsalonns@hotmail.com

Most homework is a waste of time - Irish Catholic
27th October 2011
The one bright spot in this dismal presidential election has been seeing issues like mental health, which tend to get lost in the shuffle of our national debate, get some attention even if there's not much that any President could do about them. People need to know that problems exist before they can address them. And in that spirit, I shall turn my attention to a topic that none of our candidates will mention, or probably even think about - homework....The Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO), however, released a statement disagreeing with the principals, and making a more holistic argument for homework. Spokesman Peter Mullen said: "Homework is the most regular and one of the most important links between home and school. It allows a parent/guardian to become involved in children's school work and see on a regular basis how they are doing."...

Clare cliffs on verge of world recognition - Irish Echo
26th October 2011
The final push is on to make the Cliffs of Moher one of the New Seven Wonders of Nature. Taoiseach Enda Kenny has backed campaign, which could bring tens of thousands of additional visitors to the region each year, the Clare Champion reports. The president of the Irish National Teachers Organisation, Noreen Flynn, has offered her union’s support to the campaign...

Teachers plan to challenge lower wage rates for new entrants - Irish Independent
25th October 2011
Teachers are planning to challenge cuts to pay levels for new entrants to the profession, claiming that they discriminate against younger teachers. The pay for teachers getting their first job in 2011 is 14pc lower than for those who started in previous years after salary reductions across the public service. The new teachers are appointed on a scale of EUR30,000 to EUR34,000, which is up to EUR6,000 below the 2010 figure. The Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) claims this amounts to discrimination on age grounds...

Kinnegad native praises Ireland's primary teachers - Westmeath Examiner
22nd October 2011
INTO president hosts annual dinner in Mullingar INTO president Noreen Flynn, a native of Kinnegad, praised the work of primary teachers when she spoke at the INTO dinner in the Mullingar Park Hotel on October 8. Nearly 400 primary teachers and guests heard Ms Flynn say they had shown commitment and dedication beyond the call of duty to the schools in which they worked. "Every day primary teachers turn below average investment in education into better than average outcomes for children," said Ms Flynn. "They teach more children for much longer than their European colleagues"...

Last push in Cliffs campaign - Clare Champion
21st October 2011
The final push is on to make the Cliffs of Moher one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature. An Taoiseach Enda Kenny will back the campaign, which could bring tens of thousands of additional visitors to the region each year, when he is in Clare this Thursday....The president of the Irish National Teachers Organisation, Noreen Flynn will be in the county over the coming days and will visit the Cliffs on Thursday, offering her union's support to the campaign. "Noreen Flynn will visit the Cliffs on Thursday, along with students from Liscannor National School, who will be highlighting the campaign to have the Cliffs recognised as one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature," explained North Clare INTO secretary, Michael O'Connor...

Fostering European school ties - Clondalkin Gazette
20th October 2011
Scoil Ide, New Road, Clondalkin is involved in a multi-lateral schools partnership with two primary schools in Europe. One school is in Chioggia, Italy, close to Venice, and the other school is in Karlstad, Sweden, on Lake Vanern.....On Thursday, October 6, the children in Scoil Ide performed for the group. Each class sang, danced or played the tin whistle for the gathering of visitors and VIPs, which included Noreen Flynn, president of the Irish National Teachers' Organisation. They even performed a "hake Gaelach", which was a huge hit, and danced sets from Sliabh Luachra. Ms Flynn complimented the children on their artwork and also theirworkin showcasing Irish music and dance...

The Last Word - Today FM - Matt Cooper
17th October 2011
Education: Interview with Tony Donoghue (IBEC) and Sheila Nunan (INTO) who discuss suggestions from the OECD relating to Ireland's education system

Primary School Teachers Substitute Register - Tirconaill Tribune
13th October 2011 
"Rosguill and Doe branch of the INTO wish to invite any qualified Primary School teachers, who would like to have their names added to a substitute register, to email Tina (Branch Secretary) with your name, Teaching Council number and phone number to tinanicdaid@gTnail.com. This list of available substitute teachers will be updated weekly and sent to school principals in the Carrigart. Downings, Creeslough and Dunfanaghy areas. Thank you."

Government 'taking the cowardly approach' - Principal - Sligo Champion
12th October 2011
A Local School principal and INTO official has accused the current government of taking "the cowardly political approach" of promising not to close small schools while increasing class sizes in bigger schools where large numbers of pupils were affected. "Every time the pupil/teacher ratio is increased, it affects large numbers of pupils, teachers and parents," the INTO's local media coordinator, John Conlon stated. Mr. Conlon, a primary school principal in Manorhamilton, added that every big school in Sligo had classes that had more than 30 pupils, going on to warn that the large number of parents, teachers and principals in the bigger schools who were most affected by increases in the pupil/teacher ratio would "not stand idly by" Sligo INTO representative Mr. Pat Stenson, principal of St. Patrick's National School in Calry, spoke of "the unfairness of asking a generation of children to pay who weren't even born at the time the banking and fiscal mistakes were made that landed us in this situation." Mr. Stenson said all studies, and particularly a recent American study, showed clearly that children placed in smaller classes for at least a number of years when they were younger had a better chance to succeed later on. He said that American study also found that all children benefited from smaller classes and that low achievers benefited most. Mr. Stenson also recalled that in the Dail in October 2008, Education Minister Ruairi Quinn, then in Opposition, described increases in class size as "an attack upon our children, the most vulnerable in our society."

Louth blackspot in terms of class sizes - Argus
12th october 2011
Louth has among the largest class sizes in the country, according to new figures released by the Department of Education. The statistics show that not only are 90% of children in Louth taught in classes of twenty or more, almost 20% are in classes of thirty plus pupils. The Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO) Dundalk branch have criticised the upsurge in pupil numbers, pointing to strong evidence that children fare much better in smaller class groupings. Louth has been identified as one of the blackspots in terms of class sizes,' said Brid Kindlon, spokesperson for the local branch...

Packing them in - Sligo Champion
12th October 2011
About 1,000 primary school pupils throughout County Sligo are in classes of 30 or more. And almost 80% of the 7,000 pupils in the county are in classes that are greater than the EU average. New figures show that 78% of pupils in Sligo schools are in classes of 20 or more. "Shocking" was how the general secretary of the Irish National Teachers Organisation, Sheila Nunan, described the situation in Sligo. "These figures area wake-up call for the parents of Sligo's 7,000 primary school pupils in advance of the next budget," Ms. Nunan said. The INTO has claimed Irish class sizes are the second most crowded in Europe and 20% higher than the EU average...

Teachers' Petition to Howlin - Wexford Echo
11th October 2011
AS A former teacher who was on a teacher's pension, Minister for Public Expenditure & Reform Brendan Howlin will no doubt pay particular attention to a petition handed in to him by three primary school trainee teachers on Saturday, asking him to refrain from imposing more pension cuts to struggling fledgling teachers. Alex Lynch, 20, from Barrack St.. was joined by two classmates at Min. Howlin's constituency office at SIPTU in Coolcotts on Saturday morning, where they handed over the petition to Cllr. George Lawlor as Min. Howlin was away.
A Third Year student at Merino Institute of Education. Mr. Lynch said the proposed teacher pension contribution is unfair. "They took 14 per cent off the basic wages for first year teachers... Peter Mullen from the INTO came to our college to organise a rally against the cms in Kildare St. and he asked me to present this to Mr. Howlin."

School entry procedure described as a 'minefield' - Limerick Post
8th October 2011
Limerick schools are having to copper-fasten enrolment procedures with increasing numbers of parents taking legal action if their child fails to get a place in the school of their choice....Speaking to the Limerick Post ahead of the INTO principals' and deputy principals' conference which was held in the city last weekend, Limerick press officer, Joe Lyons, described the drawing up of entry procedures as "a minefield". Mr Lyons said that management issues would be high on the agenda for the conference as these are increasingly becoming the role of the principal. "For instance, we are seeing more and more situations where if children don't fulfil the requirements for getting a place in their school of choice, parents are taking complaints under section 29 of the education act. Next thing you know, it ends up in the High Court. We have to be very careful and check and double check that entry requirements are correct and in fine with current directives"...

Six One News - RTE
5th October 2011
Around 40 trainee teachers took part in a protest outside Leinster House today in opposition to the Public Service Pensions Bill. (26mins in)

Unemployed primary teachers can do probation through JobBridge - thejournal.ie
5th October 2011
Newly qualified primary school teachers who need to complete 100 days of probation in a classroom to be fully registered will now be able to do so on JobBridge.....Healy Eames also claimed that the INTO and the TUI had given their “blessing” to the move, though a spokesperson denied this this morning, saying the union had not endorsed the scheme. “The INTO will consult with its members at meetings this month before finalising its position on the scheme,” a spokesperson for the union said.

The 50 most influential people in education - Irish Times
4th October 2011
Sheila Nunan General Secretary, INTO The INTO is often compared to the GAA. Both are a force for good in Irish life. Both reach into every town, village and hamlet in the country. And both wield immense power and influence. From Newbridge, Co Kildare, Nunan is the first female general secretary in the union’s 143-year history. She replaced John Carr in 2009. Nunan has quickly established herself as the leading teacher-union figure. “She’s head and shoulders above all the others. She has immense versatility, she’s a great communicator and she’s a clear thinker,” says one observer. Nunan has already been tested by the Croke Park deal, when she backed the agreement and faced down sizeable opposition in her union. In the subsequent ballot, members voted to back her judgment. She is praised for showing steel, but critics carp that the union, once dubbed the “teaching wing of Fianna Fáil”, is too close to Labour Ministers. That said, the INTO remains the dominant teaching union, and Nunan is seen as a talented and formidable leader...

The 50 most influential people in education - Irish Times
4th October 2011
Peter Mullan Senior official and spokesman for the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation. Little-known outside the education sector but a towering presence within it. Widely regarded as the best press officer in the sector, unfailingly helpful and informative. Liverpool and Celtic obsessive, Mullan was a principal in Maynooth, Co Kildare. Long-time friend of former INTO boss John Carr, now key ally for Sheila Nunan...

90% of classrooms are overcrowded - Carlow Nationalist
4th October 2011
Carlow children who weren't even born when the economy took a nosedive are suffering as a result of government cuts. New figures published last week revealed that more than 90% of Carlow primary school classes are too full. Primary schools in Carlow are among the most overcrowded in the country, with the majority of young children sitting in classes that have more pupils than the EU average. According to the  INTO almost all children in the county are in classes of 20 or more, with nearly a fifth of children in classes of more than 30 pupils. The general secretary of the INTO Sheila Nunan described the figures as "shocking" and said the government was not tackling the problem of overcrowded classes. The INTO dubbed the figures "a wake-up call for the parents of Carlow' s 7,000 primary school pupils in advance of the next budget. The union said Ireland's classes are the second most overcrowded in Europe and 20% higher than the EU average. Secretary of the North Carlow branch, Fran Moloney, said that when class sizes are so big, Carlow children face "less teacher time" and "modern teaching practices can't be used"...

One permanent job for newly qualified teachers - Gorey Guardian
4th October 2011
INTO meeting tells graduates' woe.  Just one of the newly qualified primary teachers who turned up to an INTO meeting in Enniscorthy has secured permanent employment....However, the county's newest educators were told at the informative meeting that all hope is not lost. The meeting at the Riverside Park hotel was organised by the INTO's Enniscorthy branch with members from all over County Wexford invited by district chairman Sean 6 Dullaigh and secretary John Brennan. The gathering was addressed by the organisation's assistant general secretary Tom O'Sullivan. He offered the young teachers some hope for their future careers as school boards have been ordered by the Department of Education to give qualified unemployed teachers priority when it comes to recruitment. A number of vacancies are expected to arise in coming months as senior members of the profession opt to retire from the classroom...

Waterford Primary schools packed to the brim - Waterford News and Star
4th October 2011
New figures published reveal that Primary schools in Waterford are among the most overcrowded in the country....The general secretary of the Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO) Sheila Nunan described yesterday's figures as shocking and said the government was not tackling the problem of overcrowded classes which was getting worse particularly in urban areas and commuter counties. The INTO called the figures "a wake-up call for the parents of county Waterford's 7,500 primary school pupils" in advance of the next budget. Ms Nunan said there is widespread agreement that younger children do not do as well in over-crowded classes...

Foisting austerity on the young - Wicklow Times
4th October 2011
Shocking figures released last week by the Irish National Teachers Organisation revealed that County Wicklow has the most overcrowded classes in the country, with 28% of children in the county attending a class with over 30 pupils by Eriia Boyle...Ms Nunan said "When class numbers ate reasonable, modern teaching methods are possible and there is teacher time for children. A decade ago the Government promised to reduce class sizes for under 9s to less than twenty, in line with international best practice. "Most children in primary school this year were not even bom when the seeds of economic mismanagement were sown," Ms Nunan said. "They should not be expected to pay the price of keeping banks on life support machines"...

Michael Reade Show - 2FM
3rd October 2011
Pension Reform. Noel Ward (General Secretary, INTO) TD Gerald Nash discuss changes to the pension scheme to new public servants

Howlin committed to cutting president's pay and pension - Irish Daily Mail
3rd October 2011
The Government is determined to slash pay and pensions....A spokesman for the primary school teachers' union INTO said plans to cut pensions were 'larcenous' as teachers would be paying more into their pensions than they get out...

Gilmore: Pension reforms prudent - The Irish Sun
1st October 2011
Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore has urged unions to stand back after they criticised radical pension reform....The INTO and ASTI teachers' unions claimed the changes - which do not affect fast accrual rates for ministers, TDs, judges, nurses, gardai and firemen - are illegal...

Limerick classrooms are 'bursting at the seams - Limerick Leader
1st October 2011
Primary pupils in County Limerick are among the most disadvantaged in the country when it comes to getting individual attention in class, according to an INTO survey. The- union's Limerick representative Joe Lyons has appealed to Education Minister Ruairi Quinn not to further increase class size if the Government is serious about producing an educated workforce for its "smart economy" ambitions...

'Should I stay or should I go?' ask county teachers at seminar - Limerick Leader
1st October 2011
Many Limerick primary teachers are asking themselves "should I stay or should I go?" and an INTO seminar of the same name this Friday will help address their questions.
The meeting in Thomond Park at 6pm is in response to the INTO continuing to receive a large volume of queries from members contemplating retirement by February 29, 2012...

One in five Meath pupils in classes of more than 30 - Meath Chronicle
1st October 2011
Meath schools and their pupils are enduring worse conditions than those in many other counties because of overcrowding and bigger class sizes, with an average size of 26.1 pupils to each teacher and sometimes reaching 33 pupils, the Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) has claimed...

One in seven in classes of 3O or more in Westmeath - Westmeath Independent
1st October 2011
Almost a seventh of Westmeath 10,000 primary school pupils are in classes of thirty or more, according to the Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO)...The general secretary of the INTO Sheila Nunan described the figures as shocking and said the government was not tackling the problem of overcrowded classes which was getting worse...