religious education in schools..

[Billys Boots]

http://www.roscommonherald.ie/2013/04/02/23-primary-schools-to-switch-from-catholic-patronage/

Recent news story on conversion of 'Catholic'-patronage primary-schools - there's 'insufficient demand' for any alternative in Roscommon, apparently. 

[Dinny Breen]

There has been multi-denominational education in RoI for many years - both my children attended schools of Educate-Together (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Educate_Together patronage.  Highly recommended, for atheists anyway (which is all I can comment on) - there's no religious instruction allowed in the schhol-day, while there is some broad education on religion and religions in general.

My daughter is starting Gaelscoil in September and they actually follow the ET curriculum, think they might come under the same governing body and the lack of religious instruction was a definite selling point.

[Ulick]

My daughter is starting Gaelscoil in September and they actually follow the ET curriculum, think they might come under the same governing body and the lack of religious instruction was a definite selling point.

There are different curricula in southern schools?

[Declan]

My daughter is starting Gaelscoil in September and they actually follow the ET curriculum, think they might come under the same governing body and the lack of religious instruction was a definite selling point.

Definitely not Dinny - See http://afpatrunachta.wordpress.com/choice-of-ethos/ Its multidenominational  rather than non-denominational and I know from my own kids experience the local PP was on the board and full religious instruction for communion and confirmation was part of the deal

[armaghniac]

I'm with you Lawnseed. Bishop McAreavey came to my school for a talk with leavers. During the talk he asked me what I wanted to do after school. At the time I intended to study at Trinity with a view to ultimately working in politics in Dublin. The Bishop asked why not join a party up here and I told him it was because there was no politics only sectarianism and it didn't appeal to me. Upon hearing that the bishop asked me to reconsider on the basis and ill never forget what he said that "the other side used to loose there best minds to England but that was slowing down so our side couldn't afford to loose people to Dublin. As it was us versus them to make sure they didn't take over again"

Whatever about Lawnseed's original point, it is reasonable enough to regret that people opposed to sectarianism leave and so leave the the field clear for bigots as a consequence. This is not really to do with religion, someone from SF would have made the same point.

[Dinny Breen]

My daughter is starting Gaelscoil in September and they actually follow the ET curriculum, think they might come under the same governing body and the lack of religious instruction was a definite selling point.

Definitely not Dinny - See http://afpatrunachta.wordpress.com/choice-of-ethos/ Its multidenominational  rather than non-denominational and I know from my own kids experience the local PP was on the board and full religious instruction for communion and confirmation was part of the deal

ET is multi-denominational as well though. There is no specific denominational taught in the Gaelscoil that my daughter will be attending and the PP is certainly not on the board. They very much have aligned themselves to ET, they even share a building. Hence why I thought they might come under the same governing body.

[Billys Boots]

I was only aware of one ET gaelscoil - it was in Cork.  I'm at a bit of a loss why AFP would have been the patron body Dinny, unless there weren't enough parents interested in running with the ET model. 

[Billys Boots]

My daughter is starting Gaelscoil in September and they actually follow the ET curriculum, think they might come under the same governing body and the lack of religious instruction was a definite selling point.

There are different curricula in southern schools?

No Ulick, the curriculum is identical in all schools - the Catholic patronage schools provide (additional) religious instruction during the school-day, which is not part of the national curriculum.  Catholic parents (in non Catholic-patronage schools) organise religious instruction for their children which is taught outside the normal school-day (normally in the evenings, once a week at the school I know).  Communion and confirmation is organised by the (Catholic) parents' committee in conjunction with the local parish, I think. 

[Dinny Breen]

I was only aware of one ET gaelscoil - it was in Cork.  I'm at a bit of a loss why AFP would have been the patron body Dinny, unless there weren't enough parents interested in running with the ET model.

I'd say it's just me confusing things, my wife has been more involved, has been elected chairperson of the parents committee. My daughter was enrolled in both ET and GS and we decided on the GS.

Didn't even realise that the curricula was the same for all primary schools 

Mental note - most take more interest in my children's education...

[Rossfan]

http://www.roscommonherald.ie/2013/04/02/23-primary-schools-to-switch-from-catholic-patronage/

Recent news story on conversion of 'Catholic'-patronage primary-schools - there's 'insufficient demand' for any alternative in Roscommon, apparently.

We aren't going to throw away 1500 years of history/tradition/heritage so we can be like all the rest of the Quasisecularist Upper Middle Class Neo Liberal boring world.
We Rossies were , are and always will be a class apart.
We also have an unfair advantage in that when you see the lovely place God made for us you can't but be impressed by Him and believe.
Mind you I can understand  why Mayogodhelpus is a non believer 

[ardal]

Have to say that I think it's partially because of the phasing out ot RE; or less significance given to it, that social norms and value have taken a mighty kick in the gonads. I'm a basic non believer, not hater, but I do think RE helps to further enforce certain aspects of decency and respect which is increasingly lacking in many our our yonger generation

[Billys Boots]

Religious education is not being phased out in the Irish curriculum; religious instruction has been. 

[ardal]

that's why I added the bit about less significance given to

[Syferus]

It's a broken system. I remember at Nathy's even after we'd completed the mandatory religion Junior Cert course and not opted to take religion for the Leaving we had to take three religion classes a week.

Luckily we had a pretty great teacher so it wasn't a bore but the clincher for me was that we'd stopped doing PE and having any computer classes at all after JC. That's so backways in terms of preparing children for the future I hardly know where to start.

[Billys Boots]

that's why I added the bit about less significance given to

I'd disagree Ardal - my kids learned about what the different religions were, what they believed, what their rules and customs were.  They weren't told you have to do this and that; weren't subjected to rules; were encouraged more to think about issues - I thought it was a very rounded approach, and more likely to produce positive social results than the alternative (from my own days anyway).