THE GOVERNMENT is unwilling to invest in computers in schools beyond the €252 million promised in the National Development Plan (NDP), the Minister for Education, Mary Hanafin, signalled yesterday.
An expert group commissioned by Ms Hanafin says the investment planned for some 4,000 schools over the next seven years will still leave Irish schools lagging behind most EU states.
Details of the report were revealed in yesterday's Irish Times.
Interviewed on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, the Minister promised to publish the report shortly.
However she held out little hope of additional funding for information and communications technology (ICT) in schools.
It would be lovely, she said, to be able to put "an awful lot more into computers".
However, given the global financial turbulence, the Government's priority was to keep the budget and the economy on track and "that is our first responsibility".
The Government record on information and communications technology was strongly criticised yesterday. The Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) criticised the "shortsighted approach".
It claimed the country's ICT structure in schools had more in common with some third-world countries than that of an economically-successful member of the EU. In fact the schools in the new EU states have enviable levels of ICT equipment and broadband.
In further reaction, school managers called for a realistic programme of investment in ICT in schools to be introduced immediately.
Ferdia Kelly, the general secretary of the Joint Managerial Board, representing most second-level schools, said: "We're miles behind. Every one of our schools needs at least €140 per student every year over the next seven years to embed ICT in teaching and learning.
"We are certainly supportive of the comments attributed to the report "Investing Effectively in Information and Communications Technology for Schools" as reported in The Irish Times."
The general secretary of Association of Community and Comprehensive Schools, Ciarán Flynn, said: "The NDP figure of €252 million sounds wonderful. But when you take on board the fact that Irish schools are down with the last five OECD countries in terms of computers in classrooms, and when you break the figures down . . . then you hit the hard reality of the thing.
"The NDP fund comes down to €46 for each primary and second-level student every year - it's no good. It won't do the job."
Ireland lies 20th in a list of 30 OECD countries, with under one computer for every 10 students.
