Pay increases for childcare workers to take effect this month
Pay deal provides 10% increases to thousands of staff in creches and after-school childcare centres
Primary Level
News and advice covering the primary level education system.
‘I wouldn’t eat them myself’: Your verdict on free hot school meals
Some parents raise concerns about food waste and meals’ nutritional value, while one supplier argues the scheme is underfunded
Ireland’s small schools are dying – but it’s not too late to save them
Years of austerity and poor choices by successive governments' choices have left many rural schools overcrowded, under-resourced and fighting for survival
Idea that Irish schoolchildren can simply ‘opt out’ of religion class is a myth
What we will have now is teachers saying 'Christians believe Jesus was the son of God' in one lesson, followed by 'Jesus was the son of God' in the next
Hot school meals scheme: A vital resource or ‘low quality’ food?
The Irish Times wants to hear your thoughts on the programme
More than one in five pupils missed over 20 days of last school year, data show
Figures still above pre-pandemic levels despite overall reduction in chronic absenteeism
School meals: How do French and Irish food for pupils compare?
Nantes pupils dined on melon, Gouda cheese, cheese tart - and that’s just the starters
Are school wellbeing programmes doing more harm than good?
Some studies suggest one-size-fits-all mindfulness and mental-health programmes may even increase difficulties among young people
McEntee rejects ‘misinformation’ about sexual orientation elements of new primary curriculum
Fifth and sixth class children should ‘understand what basic attraction is and respect each other’, Minister says
New primary school curriculum includes emphasis on language skills and Stem subjects
Updated specifications include fresh guidance on arts, social and environmental and health learning
Principal calls for checks on school attendance for children in emergency accommodation
Checks on accommodation centres raised in context of child going missing in Donabate, Co Dublin
What do the President, Kim Kardashian and I have in common?
Jen Hogan: I never anticipated that one day, Kim Kardashian and I might take a similar stance on educational issues
Children in low-income families are most exposed to unhealthy food, report finds
Unicef says children from low-income families and communities most exposed to unhealthy food environments
School secretaries and caretakers strike: Union agrees to withdraw industrial action and enter talks
Fórsa says ‘key element’ of agreement is a commitment to negotiate comparable pension entitlements to those of teachers and SNAs
Teachers should refuse to pass pickets of secretaries and caretakers
The unions have over 86,000 members between them. If they stopped working, the strike would soon end
‘Our absence impacts the children’: School secretaries and caretakers continue strike over work conditions
Secretary says she wants ‘dignity’ and to retire not into poverty
Some primary schools lose hot meals amid issues of procurement and food safety
Provider withdraws from several small schools over rules and viability
School secretaries and caretakers to begin indefinite strike after talks fail
Dispute relates to exclusion of secretaries and caretakers from public-service pension scheme
Schoolteacher who defrauded colleagues of €2,000 barred from teaching for at least five years
Inquiry heard respondent dishonestly took money from teacher and SNAs for goods never provided
Ireland tops school class-size ‘league of shame’
More than 40,000 Irish pupils are in classes of 30-plus, with 22.5 average, well above EU figure
Cost of starting secondary school in Ireland now tops €1,100
Many parents worried about costs, with only 34% saying they will be manageable
Paper payslips for school staff to be dropped to save €3m a year
About 144,000 current and retired school staff are issued payslips by the Department of Education
Back to school costs: Handy tips you can use to ease the financial burden
It’s an expensive time of year, but resourceful use of WhatsApp uniform swap shops and taking stock of usable existing items are among ways of cutting back
Game-changing dyslexia screening tool tested in Irish schools
Alpaca uses AI to detect early risk signs without adding to teachers’ workload
Some schools are relying on deposit return scheme to stop them going broke
More is being spent on free hot meals for students than on education itself
More than 1,800 teaching posts vacant amid ‘supply crisis’ for new school year
Second level schools finding it ‘impossible’ to replace teachers on leave across key subjects
Parents’ plan to raise €60,000 to employ extra teacher refused by primary school patron
First-class pupils in Clontarf school face ‘supersized’ class sizes of 34 after post axed due to enrolment dip
Most of the women in my life dread the eight-week primary school summer holidays
A friend has managed to secure the holy grail of summer camps – one that keeps the children even longer than the school day
Thinking of private school for your children? Better start saving now
When should you start saving? ‘When a child is born’
Teacher and SNA resign from Dublin school over alleged ‘harassment’ by parents for wearing keffiyeh scarves
Pair say parents accused them of ‘blatant anti-Semitism’ and ‘psychologically abusive behaviour’
Call for single law to support inclusive education for all school-age children
Review of special educational needs law finds 2004 Act fails to define inclusion
The summer juggle: How to work while the kids are off
Hurray for no more homework, lunchboxes or hurried school mornings. But boohoo for the panic and stress of school holidays
Mobile bans in schools do not have any impact on student grades or wellbeing, study finds
Findings come as Minister for Education Helen McEntee invites schools to apply for €9m for mobile phone storage
A day in the Bere Island school where teachers commute by ferry and classes take place on the beach
Children at Bere Island's two-room school go nature-spotting on the beach and mixed-age groups play in the yard at break
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How does a post-Brexit world shape the identity and relationship of these islands
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