Sir, – Should we be concerned that a High Court judge has ruled that “a 12-year old boy ranked in the highest percentile of scholastic achievements for his age be enrolled in a private school” against the wishes of his father (Home News, August 22nd)? The judge deemed it would be best suited for the boy’s talents even though a perfectly good public school had already offered a place to him.
As this case was appealed from the Circuit Court it would seem likely that considerable costs were incurred. Is this an indictment of the public school system or just a further indication of the elitist nature of fee-paying schools which are prepared to reduce their fees to encourage the participation of gifted children but may not be prepared to offer the same concession to less able children? – Yours, etc,
LOUIS O’FLAHERTY,
Lorcan Drive,
Santry,
Dublin 9.