Press Releases

Class sizes unchanged in the majority of primary schools.

Monday, 5 December 2011

Sheila Nunan, INTO General Secretary, on Budget 2012
 
Class sizes unchanged in the majority of primary schools.
 
The INTO said today parents and primary teachers will be very relieved that in the majority of schools' class sizes will remain unchanged. The primary teachers' union said class sizes in Ireland are already the second highest in EU and in the run up to this budget were a priority for primary teachers.
 
Sheila Nunan, general secretary of the INTO said: “Both government parties made education a priority earlier this year and committed to protecting frontline staff which in primary schools is the classroom teacher. In the vast majority of primary schools where overcrowding is worst, this commitment has been met for next year.”
 
A number of changes to staffing in small schools were announced in today’s budget. This will see increases phased in over the next three years. For example, a school which this year got a third teacher for 49 pupils will see that number rise to 56 pupils over three years.  This would mean a school of 50 pupils next year will only have two teachers next year with an average class size of 25 pupils. Ms Nunan said there would be an obvious impact on schools like this. “It must be remembered that in these schools teachers teach two, three or four class groups in the same room,” she said.
 
The INTO said these changes and the proposed changes in the staffing of disadvantaged schools would be examined carefully by the union. “We will need to examine the proposals closely – on a school by school basis and see how the proposed changes impact over the period of the phasing in,” said Ms Nunan. “We will be looking for an appeals procedure with some alleviation for the worst affected schools next year.”
 
“There is excellent work going on in rural and disadvantaged schools and we need to make sure these schools have the resources to continue that work,” said Ms Nunan.

The INTO said the reduction in funding for schools will put more pressure on school budgets. “Already this year we have teachers buying classroom resources from their own pockets, resources like books and art materials for children,” said Ms Nunan.
 
ENDS.