With the return of primary students in special education to classroom learning today, attention must now turn to Ireland’s over 700 post-primary schools which remain closed.
School communities continue to go above and beyond in operating a system of online teaching and learning, but there is no doubt that a phased return to traditional classroom education is in our students’ best interests.
As greater numbers receive the Covid-19 vaccine and case numbers gradually decline, public health advice indicates that our schools can again be safe learning environments with the right support and resourcing.
In light of these developments it is up to all education partners, Minister for Education Norma Foley and the Department of Education, to find a way forward and agree practical and workable solutions in order to make phased school reopening a reality.
All perspectives
Throughout the recent weeks of school closures and prior to this, the unprecedented levels of disruption to classroom learning in 2020, the entire school community - our school leaders, teachers, administrators, SNAs and our students - have faced significant challenges both in preventing the spread of Covid-19 and continuing to provide and participate in the highest possible standards of teaching and learning.
These challenges bring with them a unique set of perspectives that must be respected and considered by Minister Foley and her department.
For this reason, at this critical juncture, the Minister must approach the phased reopening of post primary as a collaboration and take account of all stakeholders who, collectively share the same objective: to keep our community safe and maintain education standards.
The Irish Second Level Students Union recently conducted an online survey of 20,000 students to investigate their views on school closures and the state exams. Their findings - that 73 per cent of students feel unsafe returning to school and that separately, 75 per cent say their trust in the Department of Education = is “poor” or “very poor” - indicate that we have a serious body of work to do to achieve the necessary collective reassurance.
Practical solutions
The feat of reopening our schools last September came about through a concerted effort where schools were provided with the resources required to implement public health advice, enable social distancing, and install the necessary policy and procedure to curtail school Covid-19 transmission.
Now, once again, a targeted stream of funding and resourcing must be deployed to enable school leaders to update infrastructure, provide teachers and staff with the necessary PPE and allow for the extensive cleaning and hygiene protocol currently required. Without this renewed investment, collective buy-in at this current juncture will not be achieved.
We must accept imperfection in a phased reopening process. Allowances must be made to those in our school communities who suffer or have loved ones who suffer from underlying health conditions and are therefore at risk, as well as those who have childcare responsibilities and are unable to find provision elsewhere. These colleagues must be facilitated in continuing to teach and work from home until it is safe and practical to return to the classroom.
It must be noted that the post-primary sector is experiencing a significant shortage of substitute teachers. The deficit of substitute teachers continues to undermine the ability of school leaders to fill the gaps created by teachers who may be sick, self-isolating or unable to work for other reasons.
No options can be taken off the table in recruiting to fill this substitute teacher deficit, and it is the view of the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals (NAPD) that we should explore collaboration with our teacher training colleges to source student teachers and help fill these gaps at this unique time.
While operating a school which has students both learning from home and in the classroom is more challenging than facilitating one or the other, all school stakeholders must accept this reality and move forward on this basis.
However, in order to address the additional operational challenges that come with both in classroom and remote learning, school leaders ask that the Department of Education provides adequate time between announcing school reopening and an expected reopening date to facilitate the extensive preparation involved.
Finally, prioritisation must occur. To this end, it is our objective that we work toward enabling our current Leaving Certificate students to avail of classroom learning at the earliest possible opportunity.
As we await a decision later this week on the format this year’s State exams will take, it is essential that these students, who have already missed so much traditional classroom learning, return as part of the first phase of our school reopening’s.
Engagement
An agreement on the phased reopening of post primary schools will be made through the ongoing and long-established engagement between the Education Partners, Minister Foley, and her Department.
Throughout the last month, all stakeholders have approached this engagement in good faith, and it is at this table whereby the NAPD will continue to work with its education partners to plot a way forward with the shared goal of reopening our school gates in the weeks ahead.
The continued learning and progression of our young people and the safety of our school communities depend on reaching such an agreement, and therefore, the stakes are too high to fail.
Clive Byrne is director of the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals.
