Joanne Irwin said says cuts here are an attack on “some of the most marginalised and vulnerable learners in the county.”
She told Donegal Daily today: “It is a backward step in terms of equality, tackling disadvantage and attempting to provide a level playing field in education.
“The further education sector provides a high quality alternative to mainstream higher education for students whose aptitudes and interests lie in areas as diverse as animation, music, horticultural and jewellery design.”
She said the increase in the pupil/teacher ratio announced in the Budget will result in the loss of 200 full time teaching posts nationally.
“In reality 500 teachers will lose their job as many teachers are now part time. This is a huge reduction in frontline staffing levels,” said Ms Irwin.
The union leader said cuts would hit Further Education students worst including:
• Second chance / adult learners
– Those who left education during the Celtic Tiger with no formal skills or qualifications
– Those who are qualified in areas where there are no longer employment opportunities who need to up-skill and retrain
– Stay at home parents whose families have grown up and who wish to train / up-skill in order to re-enter the labour market
• Unemployed citizens who wish retrain/upskill to re-enter the labour market or start their own business.
• Students who were not ideally suited to mainstream education, because, in many cases, it did not address their particular interests and aptitudes.
• Some students/school leavers choose PLC schools to undertake particular high quality, specialist courses – performing arts, green energy, art and design, cloud computing etc.
“Some of these students come with particular educational challenges and therefore need particular and focused support,” said Ms Irwin.
“This is why smaller class sizes are vital in the sector. In addition, many of the courses have a focus on practical work and small classes are essential for these courses.”
She added: “Now is not the time to cut a sector specially equipped to retrain and upskill our unemployed citizens. The budget measure is counter-productive. It will lead to further educational inequality and societal division.”
Tags: