Traveller culture and history is set to feature on the curriculum for primary and secondary schools on foot of a review announced by the Minister for Education.
Richard Bruton said the move followed last year's Government decision to recognise the ethnicity of the Traveller community.
Speaking at the annual conference of Education and Training Boards Ireland (ETBI), Mr Bruton said he has written to the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment to request a review of the place of Traveller culture and history in the existing curriculum.
Intercultural education guidelines for schools – which are more than a decade old – will also be reviewed and updated to recognise the ethnicity of the Traveller community.
“I believe that education has a significant role to play in delivering the vision underpinning that Government decision,” Mr Bruton said. “Traveller retention rates remain stubbornly low. That must change. I want more children from the Traveller community to progress in education at all levels.”
Good practice
He has also asked the council to identify examples of good practice in schools to provide these as general exemplars.
Studies indicate that Travellers are more likely to drop out of the education system. Some research suggests, for example, that Traveller boys are up to 50 times less likely to complete the Leaving Cert.
Mr Bruton said there were initiatives under way to help boost the inclusion of Travellers and members of the Roma community in the education system, including a Tusla-led pilot project to target attendance, participation and school completion.
"The Government's ambition is to make the Irish education and training service the best in Europe within a decade," he said.
“We must find ways to be the best at integrating those from minority groups, and other cultures, into our society.”
Community schools
Meanwhile, at the annual ETBI conference there were calls to provide more State-run community national schools to meet parental demand for multi-denominational education.
There are currently 14 community national schools, which are run by local Education and Training Boards.
Cllr Jim Finucane, president of ETBI, said that given the State was the patron of these schools, there should be greater scope to ensure more new schools come under its umbrella.
Mr Bruton, however, said that while these schools have a valuable role to play, policymakers need to be mindful of parental choices when awarding patronage to new schools.
