An ambitious pilot project to examine the feasibility of introducing physical education at Junior Certificate level will begin in the next few months. But Department of Education sources stress that PE will not be on the syllabus as an exam subject before the next century.
The project is a joint initiative of the Departments of Education and Tourism, Sport and Recreation. It envisages a core group of 24 PE teachers being seconded to oversee the implementation of course guidelines developed by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment in selected schools. The group will include specialists in gymnastics, athletics, dance, aquatics, outdoor pursuits and health education.
Its director is expected to be a Cork physical education teacher, Mr John Halbert from Colaiste Chriost Ri. It has been developed in consultation with the Irish Sports Council, which will take on additional powers later this year when it becomes a statutory body.
The Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation, Dr McDaid, is known to be particularly keen that young people in deprived areas, many of them badly affected by drugs, should be targeted by the initiative.
A joint announcement from the two Departments will detail the project, outline plans to increase sports coaching in schools and encourage sporting links between schools and local communities. A special course in coaching children and young people is planned next summer at the National College for Physical Education in Limerick for teachers, parents and sports coaches.
The Department of Education currently recommends that some time be allocated to PE in all schools. But poor facilities, a shortage of trained teachers and the fact that PE is not an exam subject mean that many schools make little provision for it.