ANALYSIS:The Catholic Church will not give up control of primary schools easily
THE 8,000-WORD position paper prepared by the Catholic Schools Partnership is an impressive document which outlines in a measured way the contribution made by Catholic schools to Irish society.
The partnership unveiled the document in St Patrick’s National School in Diswellstown, west Dublin. With 45 nationalities and children of all faiths and none, it’s the kind of school which represents the new, inclusive face of Catholic education in modern Ireland.
During the press conference, much praise was lavished on a primary school system which is high quality and supremely cost-efficient. A central theme? The system was not broken – so why rush to fix it?
The problem of course is that Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn has a very different perspective. The Minister has cited the views of Archbishop Diarmuid Martin, who has said he has 90 per cent of all Dublin schools under his control to cater for about 50 per cent of the population who actively want a Catholic education.
Opinion polls also suggest an appetite for change. The most recent Irish Times poll on the issue indicated clear majority support (61 per cent) for State control of primary schools.
During yesterday’s press conference, the Catholic Schools Partnership was at pains to stress its active, constructive engagement in the process initiated by the Minister, which will see the setting up of a Forum on Patronage and Pluralism and the roll-out of newly divested schools – possibly by next year.
But the Catholic schools were also setting down clear markers. They will not accept the speedy timeline suggested by the Minister, where the process could begin by January. They will not countenance a situation where 50 per cent of their schools are divested, as the Minister has suggested. And they will not tolerate any attempt to force change on reluctant school communities.
Fr Michael Drumm, chairman of the partnership, said change needed to be thought through carefully. Critically, he also raised the prospect that only 10 per cent of schools may eventually be transferred – well short of the 50 per cent target raised by the Minister.
It may be that Fr Drumm is outlining the more realistic scenario. As anyone in education will tell you, the process of divesting schools is a huge logistical challenge, raising all sorts of awkward questions. How should the views of the school community be assessed in the first instance? Which schools in which areas should be transferred? How might Catholic schools be compensated for their investment over the years? How should faith formation be addressed in the newly divested schools?
The Minister will be looking to the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism to tease out these and other issues.
But he may also face one other practical hurdle – the innate conservatism of many Irish parents when it comes to any change in their local school – especially one perceived to be providing a good service to the local community.
Fr Drumm was right yesterday when he said the issue of patronage was scarcely a burning one for school communities more concerned about cutbacks or the current review of all small schools, threatening their existence. It seems certain the church can rely on strong local support as it moves to oppose any change to school patronage seen as being imposed on communities. But the Minister is correct when he says the current system of largely Catholic-controlled school patronage is out of kilter with modern Ireland.
He may be right to push for an updated system which reflects our new diversity. But it will be no easy task.
The key will be to ensure that change will come only in response to manifest public demand across communities.
Otherwise, as the Catholic Schools Partnership signalled yesterday, the status quo will remain.
