A chara, – Ben Healy, (April 22nd), takes The Irish Timesto task for allegedly getting its facts wrong in reporting that ASTI "only" banned meeting parents "outside of school hours" rather than a blanket ban.
Given that most of these meetings happen after the end of last class, his complaint seems pedantic. Also given, as Mr Healy confirms, that the ASTI meeting happened behind closed doors, The Irish Timesis to be commended for publicising, pretty accurately, a piece of news which affects a large majority of people, ie, parents and students.
Mr Healy says he regards himself as “a moderate with the best interests of his students at heart”. I can understand he may feel that parents can be further inconvenienced, as more of them will not have to take time off work now they are unemployed. However, I cannot understand how it is in “the best interests of his students” that parent meetings will now require teachers to take time out from class. It seems to me that students will suffer the most by missing class time.
And of course it is not they who have created this mess in the first place. – Is mise,
ANDREW DOYLE,
Lehenagh,
Lislevane,
Bandon,
Co Cork.