Integrated Education: Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down?

[Eamonnca1]

The system of National Schools was ahead of its time back in the 1830s. Each county in Ireland was to have at least one of them. Intake was multi-denominational, there was strict separation between when religious and non religious education was taking place, and a sign had to be hung up signifying when religious instruction was taking place. All religious objects had to be removed from sight when religious instruction was over. Governance was shared between Catholics, CoI and Presbyterians, two members of each denomination.

The mixed nature of it was undermined by religious interests who wanted absolute control, and they got their way eventually for shame.

[dillinger]

[quote author=Orangemac link=topic=20069.msg1006019#msg1006019 dI surprisingly found a lot of Protestants were actually all right.

Most are like everyone ok, some people need to move on, it's a brave new world out there.

[ONeill]

As with sport, music and art, education should be alienated from any religious influence in terms of institutional ethos.

[Maguire01]

Semantics? Nonsense, as has already been pointed out to you state, CCMS and Irish medium as open to all, with Irish medium being the only truely secular education system in NI. It's by no means ideal but at least there is parental choice. What people choose to do with that choice is no buisness of anyone else. Certainly none of my children would be attending any kind of Peter Robinsons reformed Northern Ireland "state" schools.

Open to all in theory maybe, but that's generally where it end.

[Ulick]

Semantics? Nonsense, as has already been pointed out to you state, CCMS and Irish medium as open to all, with Irish medium being the only truely secular education system in NI. It's by no means ideal but at least there is parental choice. What people choose to do with that choice is no buisness of anyone else. Certainly none of my children would be attending any kind of Peter Robinsons reformed Northern Ireland "state" schools.

Open to all in theory maybe, but that's generally where it end.

So what would you propose - do you think the unionists are really up to putting Irish citizenship and identity on a par with Britishness in their wee schools? Do you propose to force an NI identity on those who choose an Irish identity and citizenship in their own country? Let's not propagate the myth here, this has f**k all to do with religion, if it did as Eammon points out there, it would all have been settled long ago.

[Milltown Row2]

Integrated schooling should start in primary schools, must schools in rural areas are already

[Milltown Row2]

How can it be afforded to have two schools in small parishes?

[The Worker]

How can it be afforded to have two schools in small parishes?

alot of rural parishes are predominently one religion

[customsandrevenue]

Partition and 'segregation' (oh golly gosh how did that happen - let's pretend we don't know why) come hand in hand.
No big deal.
Get rid of partition.
Or play wee verbal/internet thought games with each other.
Carry on as you are.
Eejits.

[mylestheslasher]

Partition and 'segregation' (oh golly gosh how did that happen - let's pretend we don't know why) come hand in hand.
No big deal.
Get rid of partition.
Or play wee verbal/internet thought games with each other.
Carry on as you are.
Eejits.

Until you learn to string a couple of sentences together that make sense, perhaps you should refrain from calling others Eejits!

[Maguire01]

Partition and 'segregation' (oh golly gosh how did that happen - let's pretend we don't know why) come hand in hand.
No big deal.
Get rid of partition.
Or play wee verbal/internet thought games with each other.
Carry on as you are.
Eejits.

Who's pretending they don't know why there's segregation?
And in what way would an end to partition solve segregated education?

[long grass]

A Big Thumbs Down!

Any reasons why?

Integrated education will dilute our culture and its importance.  There will be no or little emphasis on our sports, language, dance, music etc, as there would be in an all catholic school.  Kids will be growing up playing hockey or badminton instead of GAA, and learning German instead of Irish.  A big NO for me!

What a shame it would be if children actually learned a subject such as German that may actually benefit them in the real world instead of getting an A star in Irish. If their not feeling "Irish" enough after going to mass on a Sunday, making Holy Communion, playing Gaelic games and doing a bit of Irish dancing once a week they could always "choose" to learn the language or how to play some trad in their spare time. How many would actually so it though?

[armaghniac]

How many would actually so it though?

Those who were not hopelessly Anglicised but who still had some pride in their own country, perhaps.

[ExcellentDriver]

A Big Thumbs Down!

Any reasons why?

Integrated education will dilute our culture and its importance.  There will be no or little emphasis on our sports, language, dance, music etc, as there would be in an all catholic school.  Kids will be growing up playing hockey or badminton instead of GAA, and learning German instead of Irish.  A big NO for me!

What a shame it would be if children actually learned a subject such as German that may actually benefit them in the real world instead of getting an A star in Irish. If their not feeling "Irish" enough after going to mass on a Sunday, making Holy Communion, playing Gaelic games and doing a bit of Irish dancing once a week they could always "choose" to learn the language or how to play some trad in their spare time. How many would actually so it though?

Er, thon's a Question. It should end with '?', not '.'

Irony is that the best proponents of the English Language in Ireland are Gaelgori. Padraig Pearse himself Graduated in English.