
Government are at the Back of the Class on Leaving Cert decision. -Tóibín
Aontú Leader Peadar Tóibín TD has called on the government to stop procrastinating on the Leaving Cert decision.He stated;
“Opposition TDs have given the government space and time to consult with all the stakeholders in the Education Sector. If the government seek to proceed with a traditional Leaving Cert they need to set out a Road Map on how that can be done safely and fairly and they need to do it now”.
“The exam could and should be modified to allow for the massive lack of class time. Instead of answering 3 out of 5 questions students on certain papers, students could be asked to answer 3 out of 8 questions to increase the likelihood that students can focus on question material that have been covered in class. We have consulted widely with teachers and principals. Many saying that if all the classrooms in schools are used the number of students in each class could be as low as 5 children and could be well spaced out”.
“We need to make the protection of teachers a priority. Aontú is calling for school staff to made a priorities for testing and vaccination. In addition to priority testing, contact tracing measures must be implemented and extensive testing of staff, adults and children where there is a Covid case in the classroom. If we can serial test meat factories we can serial test education professionals. Furthermore, empower management to inform and communicate with staff and parents where there are cases. Finally, ensure a proper supply of PPE for these schools. The 40% grant is not good enough. This means N95 standard masks. Whatever is needed, ensure they have it.”