Following Saturday’s protest in Eyre Square, new figures show that 4,415 children in primary schools in Galway are in classes of 30 pupils or more.
That’s according to Senator Fidelma Healy Eames who obtained the information from her party colleague John O’Mahony.
The figures refer to the situation on the ground before the budget cutbacks and Senator Healy Eames said, “Children in schools across Galway are paying the price for 10 years of Fianna Fáil incompetence with 4,145 stuck in overcrowded classrooms with 30 pupils or more.
“We all remember attending packed meetings before the last election where Fianna Fáil promised that class sizes would be reduced. Their betrayal is now complete as this Government information, obtained by Fine Gael, clearly shows.
“The information refers to the 2007/2008 school year and also shows that 15,215 of children are taught in classrooms with between 20 and 29 other pupils. Despite the Fianna Fáil spin that classroom size is largely irrelevant, forcing children to learn in overcrowded classrooms hugely impairs their ability to learn and the teacher’s ability to teach.”
The information refers to the 2007/2008 school year and shows that 15,215 children are taught in classes of between 20 and 29 pupils.
The senator added, “As this information shows, overcrowded classrooms are the reality on the ground for each and every school in Galway city and county. Class sizes are set to get even worse as the figures released by the Government refer to the situation before the education cutbacks. Once again, this Government has targeted the vulnerable for cutbacks when they are already suffering.”
The claims came as hundreds of people took to Galway’s rainy streets to protest at the recent Government’s recent education cuts. Despite the horrid weather a large crowd gathered under a sea of umbrellas in Eyre Square saturday to protest against the cuts.
