The Irish National Teachers’ Organisation today called on the government to clarify what funding if any, is available for school computing. The union’s General Secretary John Carr said the Taoiseach’s refusal to say if funding for new computers was available would come as a body blow to schools waiting nearly six years for government investment to upgrade clapped out computers.
“In computer terms that is two lifetimes of no money for school computers. Most school computers should be in museums not schools,” said Carr.
Mr Cowen was unable to confirm to the Dail today if the commitment in the NDP that €252 million would be spent on school computing was going ahead.
John Carr said there must be no doubts about this matter. “Either the money is there or it’s not,” he said. “If it is, it must be paid to schools straight away. If it’s not then government must admit publicly to parents and teachers that it has broken another promise on primary education.”
Mr Carr said Irish primary schools already lag well behind their EU counterparts when it comes to IT investment. “Our level of funding is only a fraction of what is spent in the north,” he said. “A digital border is beginning to divide our island.” Only last December, Mr Cowen, in his budget speech told the Dail that postponing or delaying the NDP would be a major policy error and specifically stated education would be included in the main elements of the capital investment programme for 2008. Today he was unable to confirm if the planned investment in Information and Communication Technology in schools would go ahead as planned.

It’s now official!

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