STUDENTS IN one of Ireland’s largest teacher training colleges spend too much time studying religion, according to a report.
Trainee
primary teachers at Mary Immaculate College in Limerick also suffer
from programme overload, it said – many do not have time “to critically
reflect on their professional development and practice”.
The
report from the Teaching Council – the professional body for teachers –
said the time allocated for religion in the college was four times that
for science.
While the report welcomed the fact student teachers
have access to the Certificate in Religious Education on an optional
basis, it was concerned at the amount of time allocated to religious
education within the Bachelor of Education (B Ed) programme, in the
context of the overall number of contact hours available.
It
recommended the college authorities address “some inconsistency in the
balance of time allocated to various programme components . . . For
example, attention should be given to the fact that subjects such as
science, social, personal and health education (SPHE), geography and
history are currently allotted 12 hours each, as compared with the 48
hours each allotted to other subjects such as visual arts, religious
education and múineadh na Gaeilge.”
The report is certain to
revive controversy regarding the huge influence of the Catholic Church
in teacher training. The certificate in religious studies is a
compulsory requirement of the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference for
teachers working in Catholic-managed primary schools.
These comprise more than 90 per cent of schools in the Irish system.
Some,
however, have questioned whether State-funded teacher-training colleges
should still require all students to complete a course in religion.
Last
year a Co Cavan teacher who lost the offer of a permanent post after
she failed to furnish a Catholic religion certificate was awarded more
than €12,000 by the Equality Tribunal.
The tribunal found a Co Cavan
school had discriminated against her on the grounds of religion when she
applied for a permanent post.
In the report, Mary Immaculate
College is praised for the excellent work ethic of staff, its positive
ethos and atmosphere and the overall positive feedback from recent
graduates, principals and external examiners.
It is criticised on several fronts, however:
There
was evidence, the report said, of programme overload – the intensity
was such that many students lacked sufficient time to critically reflect
on their professional development and practice.
The problem of overload
was also significant from a staff point of view.
Links between
the college education and arts courses, it added, should be strengthened
and made more explicit.
The college should, it said, ensure the
education component is afforded sufficient time so the purpose of the B
Ed programme in preparing students for entry to the teaching profession
can be fulfilled to the greatest extent possible.
Regarding the
timing and duration of the school placement, the panel considered the
timing of the placement in Year 1 was not totally satisfactory,
occurring as it did before students were introduced to critical concepts
in educational psychology.
The review of Mary Immaculate, which
is due to be published later this week, was conducted by a panel of
senior educationalists chaired by Dr Maeve Martin, former lecturer in
education at NUI Maynooth.
SIC: IT/IE