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Saturday, August 14, 2010

Counting the Cost of "Free" Education


I'm sure by now every pupil and teacher is getting slowly excited about the prospect of returning to school in a couple of weeks. The little ones are surely deciding which school bag to get - Ben 10 or Hannah Montana - and whether or not a new set of colouring pencils are required. Some are excited because maybe they'll have Mr. Jones for biology? Others will groan at the prospect! My fellow teachers are probably ordering their new mark books, purchasing new whiteboard markers, new shiny pens (blue, green and red of course) or maybe even a new laptop for those technically minded individuals! Some teachers may be deciding what to teach their new class groups in the first term while other will follow the "whatever worked for me last year" rule! Either way, there is a level of excitement about returning back to school, even if we don't really want to admit it!

But for Mammy and Daddy it is surely more of a stress. The Ben 10 or Hannah Montana back packs don't come cheap. Those new colouring pencils are a luxury, not a necessity, and the amount of copies the wee ones go through seems to increase exponentially every year. And then there are those horrid textbooks which can't be passed from kid number one to kid number two because in the three years between them, three more "new" editions have been released - each new edition costing €40 or so. For little Johnnie sitting ten subjects in his Junior Cert next June that €400! Oh, but don't forget the workbooks - he'll need those for his homework! Add another €50 to the bill! And damn puberty too - because little Johnnie isn't so frickin little any more! New trousers, new jumper, new white shirts, new tie (oh he lost it during the summer), new shoes and a year's supply of deodorant to last through September! All this adds up. By now Mammy and Daddy are wondering what exactly is "free education" because surely they have spent close to €1000 on each of the kids. Then comes the kick in the teeth - the school voluntary contribution. Bam, another €200 or so. In fact, a recent Bank of Ireland survey suggested that the annual cost of sending a secondary pupil to school over the entire year comes to nearly €13,000. Private fee paying boarding schools seem rather good value now don't they? 

There are a number of issues surrounding the ever increasing costs associated with going back to school. Firstly there are the publishing companies. In the times we are living in, why are there new editions of textbooks being released every year. It is nonsensical and needs to stop. Secondly, teachers need to stop changing textbooks frequently because parents want the opportunity, if it arises, to recycle textbooks between siblings. New copies, pens and the likes will always be on every kid's wish list returning to school - that Mammy and Daddy can't avoid - but why aren't these items supplied to the pupils in schools? The reason is government funding is grossly inadequate - hence the need for "voluntary contributions". They put parents in an awful predicament but no school can survive without them. Many parents are facing serious financial hardship at the moment with increased mortgage repayments and increasing utility costs and these voluntary payments will most likely be bottom of the agenda this September. It may well be the case that schools may struggle to keep themselves funded in 2010 - 2011.

So what needs to be done? Well everyone has a responsibility here, parents, pupils, publishers, teachers and government. Parents could see if they are eligible for the Back to School Clothing and Footwear allowance (click here for advice from MABS on applying for this grant). They need to budget for the expectant costs and spread these over the summer months. Government needs to make it easier to apply for the aforementioned grant and widen the qualification ranges (click here to find out who qualifies now) . Schools need to facilitate second hand book and uniform stores, with teachers not changing their textbooks every year. Publishing companies need to stop producing new editions of their textbooks annually and reduce the cost of their textbooks significantly. As a side issue, digital textbooks should be supplied to all pupils as a matter of urgency. But most importantly, government needs to fund schools properly and take these costs out of the parents pockets. If you are going to declare that primary, secondary and third level education in Ireland is free then it really needs to be free.

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