Funferal

Part-time education in Ireland

Joanna Tuffy,the (Irish) Labour Party’s Seanad spokesperson on education, has a wonderful suggestion for extending education opportunities in the community. The details may need finessing, but overall it hits the nail on the head.

Institutes of Technology could make an imaginative response to the difficulties they are having in filling places through the CAO by inviting people in employment to attend the unfilled courses as part-time student during the day, according to Senator Joanna Tuffy, the Labour Party Education Spokesperson in the Seanad.
“Following the acceptance by students of CAO offers, Institutes of Technology have reported up to 1,000 unfilled places on their courses, many in Science, Engineering and Computing. Even though places remain unfilled these courses will run, and the full teaching and support costs will be incurred.
“Individual Institutes could respond imaginatively to this situation by inviting workers and other mature students in their catchment areas to take up the vacant places. There would be no need to charge fees to part-time students coming on to the courses as the funding has already been allocated by the government.
“Institutes would have to allow such students to select a limited number of modules on a course, to enable them to combine their studies with work. Institutes, and indeed the Department of Enterprise and Employment should encourage employers to facilitate their workers to attend classes during the day.
“If implemented, my proposal would result in more efficient use of public money which is going to be spent anyways, and at the same time help workers and their companies to benefit from increased skills and knowledge thus increasing their competitiveness”.