The Irish educational system is currently failing to provide equal chance, equal access and share to graduate employment opportunities with global employers in Ireland. There seems to be a cultural over-reliance on the English language in Irish society, a lack of awareness importance of being multi-lingual at an early age and language learning time in the classroom is spent on compulsory Irish.
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Offered a place on a postgrad course unable to continue due to budget 2012. no job no hope and no independant money to do the masters. Also I have family dependants, so it really feels like a sentence in regards to my future or rather the undermining of career to be financially independent, alas its not going to happen. ... read full story / add a comment

Somehow as the sounds around us get stronger our voices get weaker and no-one wants to listen.  If we speak out people around us feel uncomfortable and threatened. ... read full story / add a comment

“Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as the rest of men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week; I give tithes of all that I get. But the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote his breast, saying, God, be thou merciful to me a sinner. I say unto you, This man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be humbled; but he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.”

Luke Chapter 18

You probably know that a publican means a tax-collector. Such a person was generally hated reviled despised in biblical times. A publican was definitely not “politically correct.”
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When I was young I remember my father and mother discussing someone in fairly heated terms. The epithet used to some up the discussion was that this person (I do not remember who it was) was a "dog in the manger." I was all ears and later I got my mother to explain to me what a "dog in the manger" meant. "The dog cannot eat the hay," my mother elaborated, "But he won't let the horse eat it." ... read full story / add a comment

We all learn a lot of rules and regualtions and make an effort to abide by the rules. We know that rules are necessary to understand in order to play the game. But often we suspect that the rules are somone else's rules and not really to our advantage. Some people do the honourable thing and just break the rules; others circumvent, subvert, bend, bend, twist, exploit the rules ... read full story / add a comment

SIPTU is absolutely opposed to the lifting of the cap on University tuition fees proposed through the Browne review which could see fees soar to an extortionate rate of up to £12,000 per year. It beggars belief that these proposals be put forward at anytime, never mind in the depths of one of the harshest economic recessions.

The Browne review or any other proposed hike in student or tuition fees can not be allowed to happen, this will only result in preventing thousands of young people from low to middle income earning families from going to University and in thousands more emigrating with little to no prospects here. ... read full story / add a comment

Firsthand account of what happened at the Student Protest. ... read full story / add a comment

Articles about the shortcomings of recent graduates appeared in all of last weekend's papers. This is a response to those articles from one of those illiterate graduates. ... read full story / add a comment

Recording of the Better Questions seminar at Semora Spraoi, February 3rd 2010. ... read full story / add a comment

Has the term 'religious ethos' any substance in fact .If it is claimed to be a major factor in the life of a school then let it be evaluated in terms of outcome just as we have league tables in terms of academic achievement. ... read full story / add a comment

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions is today holding a national day of protest against pay cuts in the public and private sectors, as well as cuts in public services.

The move marks the beginning of an ICTU campaign to fight any move to cut workers’ pay and pensions or to slash funding for public services. Several trade unions in the education sector are calling on workers to join a protest, starting at Parnell Square at 2:30pm.

Staff and students in UCD are assembling outside the Arts Block today at 1pm before heading into Trinity College to join up with other members of the Siptu education branch at 2:15pm.

* 1pm UCD Arts Block: students & students and staff meet up to head into Trinity College
* 2:15pm Trinity College: SIPTU Education Branch meets before heading to Parnell Square for the march.
* 2:30pm Parnell Square: The march kicks-off
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In the Summer of 2008 it was confirmed that Ireland's economy was in recession. At the same time thousands of people received the results of their degrees. This article looks at how the recession has affected the graduates of 2008, a group whose struggles have been under-reported in the media and some of those graduates relate their experiences, within the last year, of jobseeking, social welfare and further education. ... read full story / add a comment

Reflections on the appointment of Bertie Ahern by the NUI Maynooth School of Business and Law. ... read full story / add a comment

University presidents in the Republic grieving over challenge to rather large purses . . . So where are the student protests? ... read full story / add a comment

Third level fees should be re-introduced. ... read full story / add a comment

This is an open letter, sent this morning to all TDs using the form at contact.ie, asking for the cuts to education announced in Budget 2008 to be rolled back on.

Feel free to copy and send it yourself to all or any TDs or modify it to suit your own school/constituency.

If only 10% on indymedia.ie users send it to all TDs (about 2,000 people) that will mean 332,000 emails will be sent (2000 users multiplied by 166 TDs) and it will only take you one minute to copy the letter, fill out the form, and hit SEND. I can't but think it might make some difference. ... read full story / add a comment

This article is an invitation for people that may know the answer to the following questions i have in relation to fee paying schools. I understand that the state pays the wages of teachers in fee paying schools while allowing them to also charge those parents who can afford it - fees.
My understanding is that this is situation is an historical anomaly based on most fee paying schools being protestant at the creation of the state 90 odd years ago. I was wondering in these times of cut backs , is it true that the state continues with this situation..... ... read full story / add a comment