Parents from 33 countries were presented with a new booklet on primary school life in their local school in north Dublin yesterday.
Some 80 per cent of the children starting junior infants at St Brigid's national school in Blanchardstown this week are from immigrant families.
They, or their parents, come from nationalities including Kurdish, Vietnamese, Syrian, Afghan, Dominican Republic, Pakistani, Moldovan, Romanian and South African. Last year, non-nationals made up 40 per cent of the junior infants intake.
The booklet, Your Child in Primary School: Tips For Parents, published yesterday by the Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) is available to all parents of children in primary school. It will be especially useful for parents not familiar with the Irish school set-up, said INTO vice-president Denis Bohane.
"It is in recognition of the fast growing numbers of non-nationals in the schools that the booklet is being published in French and Polish as well as in English and Irish."
The booklet, which has been written by teachers, is thought to be the first of its kind available across the State, and includes advice on preparing a youngster for school-life, helping them with homework, health and hygiene issues (such as how to deal with head lice), healthy eating, bullying and interculturalism.
It also gives an outline of the school year, the curriculum, school management structures and parent-teacher contacts.
Deirdre Kirwan, principal of St Brigid's Girls' National School, welcomed the booklet and in particular the growing multiculturalism of school life. However, she called for more resources from the Department of Education to enable schools to give the best service to a rapidly changing school population. "Those whose first language is not English would be withdrawn from class for short periods for extra tuition in English. We have two support teachers here for that but we need more," she said.
She said the overall impact was hugely positive. Not only did they engender a positive outlook among the Irish pupils towards learning languages, but the non-national children were "highly motivated to learn. I think that actually pushes the standards and energy in a class up." She said the school used an Irish blessing as its mission statement, which includes the line: "Often, Often, Often, Does Christ come in the stranger's guise."
