Cutting investment in education would be short-sighted and delay Ireland’s economic recovery, second-level teachers claimed today.
Speaking at the ASTI annual conference in Cork today, general secretary Pat King said Ireland’s education system’s most important resource is its teachers.
“Education is a frontline service. It is labour intensive. Its quality depends on teachers being there and being available for students.”
Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn told the conference yesterday his department will be inviting the union, along with the other relevant partners, to work on identifying budget savings.
While the Government is committed to protecting frontline education services to the greatest extent possible, he said, the challenge of doing so against rising enrolment was not to be underestimated.
In response Mr King said today there is “no fat to waste” in the education service.
“Schools are run on a shoe-string and overall investment in education has always been pathetic – well below the OECD average,” he said.
“Cutting education resources is short-sighted in the extreme. It is bad enough that the current generation of young people are going to inherit massive debt repayments without also denying them the best possible education. Education is an investment in individuals, communities, society and our economy. Knowledge is the central driver of economic recovery.”
Some 500 delegates are attending the conference in Cork, which continues until tomorrow evening.
