Future of education 'still in the dark'
Thursday, 23 October 2008
Omagh district councillor, Pat McDonnell, with Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, daughter of the late Robert Kennedy, and Bill Reilly, outgoing ANIELB president, at the Association of Northern Ireland Education and Library Boards annual conference. SU4310ES
by Emma Stewart.
Omagh district councillor and member of the Western Education and Library Board, Pat McDonnell, has expressed disappointment at the education minister's failure to 'tidy up' her portfolio during the Association of Northern Ireland Education and Library Boards' (ANIELB) annual conference last week.Key to Catriona Ruane's address was concern over pupil underachievement, and her determination to 'raise standards'.
However the event, held at the Millennium Forum, Londonderry, on Thursday and Friday last, left former school teacher, Pat McDonnell, disappointed by the minister's 'missed opportunity' to clarify the future of the local board itself and indeed the post-primary transfer.
“There were a number of stimulating speakers on the programme, but I was disappointed by what should have been the 'piece de resistance' of the event - the minister's speech on Friday morning.
“I was hoping that the minister would taken this opportunity to tidy up what would have to be described as a rather untidy desk. It has to be conceded that the educational landscape is currently littered with controversial positions and unfinished projects," he said.
“Take, for example, the very future of the education and library boards themselves. The successor body -- the Education and Skills Authority (ESA) - was intended to come into action on April 1, 2008. We were then given a deadline of April 1, 2009, and that is also looking very unlikely.
Uncertain
“In the meantime, staff and board members are faced with difficult decisions in planning for an uncertain future. At a local level, there is concern at the potential loss of employment in Omagh, a town reeling from the steady destruction of our acute hospital, as well as a number of commercial closures in recent years.
“Board members were at least entitled to be told if the next ESA deadline is on or off -- but never a word about it. No news either on the very important youth services sector - will it be handled in future by the new councils, or will it stay somewhere in education?"
On the on the post-primary transfer, described by Mr McDonnell as the 'elephant in the room', he said it was "not addressed in any meaningful way. This is very unfair to our current P6 children and their parents and teachers."
Having hoped for a "strong, clear" message over the specific issues, he said: "Instead we had a repetition of an entrenched position, laced with vague aspiration and tired cliché. Any hope of opening up the real issues was frustrated by the lack of opportunity for a 'question and answer' session - that is an aspect of the event which should be addressed by the organisers - if there is ever another ANIELB conference! We still don't know."
Direction
Concluding, the councillor said: "I feel that this was an opportunity missed. The education sector is crying out for clear direction - we are still in the dark."
Among a number of high-profile speakers from across the globe who addressed the two-day conference was Professor Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, eldest child of Robert Kennedy and Maryland's first woman Lt Governor. Prof Kennedy is an adjunct professor at Georgetown University's School of Public Policy and has been a visiting fellow at the Kennedy School of Government.
Outgoing ANIELB president, Bill Reilly, from Omagh, said: "Delegates must embrace the many challenges that lie ahead for education in Northern Ireland and I call on all politicians, civil servants, trade union representatives and interested parties to move forward and establish an environment where the education system can flourish."
He continued: "The association is open to any change that improves the outcomes for children, but we are not convinced that the current plans are the best fit, to ensure improvements in educational standards in Northern Ireland. The Association is of a view that any new administrative structures that may emerge, must be fit for purpose and time spent getting this right will be of benefit to our children and young people here in Northern Ireland."
Pat Brannigan, incoming president, added: "In the current climate, it is imperative that we maintain the best of our education systems in terms of its high academic standards and diversity of provision, while ensuring that every child and young person is provided with the opportunities to develop their basic skills and their unique talents; and that no one is left behind."
