BRENDA MORGAN,
Madam, - Mr Noel Dempsey is proposing to set up 500 new administrative posts in his efforts to "cut principals' burden of bureaucracy" (The Irish Times, February 8th). Sure isn't the Department of Education and Science itself a bureaucracy? These new posts will add even more difficulties to an already saturated and highly complex Department littered with bureaucrats. The latter incidentally, is defined in my Concise Oxford as "an inflexible or insensitive administrator."
I attended the Irish Primary Principals' Network Conference last week along with more than 500 principals. I learned more in 15 minutes talking to a group of experienced principal teachers about solving my "burden of bureaucracy" than any amount of time and effort which the DES could contribute. What we need are more trained teachers so we can:
avoid being compelled to employ untrained substitute teachers, of whom there are at least 1000 employed at present: avoid having over 30 children in a class - any class from Junior Infants to 6th; allow teaching principals to fulfil their job specification as administrators.
The Irish Times rightly reported that "there is a serious fall-off in the level of interest in vacancies at principal level. In fact, only three applicants for one position is the present norm. Why? I have given three good reasons above. Mr Dempsey does not need extra administrative bureaucrats - he needs extra teachers. Over 500 primary principals cannot be wrong. Listen to them, please. - Yours, etc.,
BRENDA MORGAN, Asgard Park, Howth, Co Dublin.