I am really disgusted at the contents of the Ryan Report.
My heart was in my mouth reading about the abuse suffered by those poor, little children. I just don't know how they survived it. Many didn't.
I am very sad and mad as hell at the subsequent reaction of the so-called religious and also of our so-called Government.
I know that this is a very simplistic view, but children were abused in Ireland for decades because:
The State outsourced education and health care.
The State kow-towed to the church.
Has anything changed there?
No.
The church and religious still run education in this country.
They are still very involved in health care.
Woods and Ahern agreed to the shocking deal in favour of the nuns and religious.
Bertie taunted Pat Rabitte (when he questioned that deal) that he only wanted to get rid of the religious in Ireland!
Rabitte saw that as trying to ruin his reputation, and he was right, it probably did damage it.
The State is very deferential to bishops over education.
Many people are still scared of the church's power in Ireland.
I'm sick of the lies and rotteness, and more to come.
I have an idea to rid us of this rotten lot.
Seize everything they own (change the constitution if necessary).
Round them all up and send them to Haughey's island in Kerry - how appropriate! One screwed the country, the other screwed the country :-(
Let them do what they like to each other there.
Provide free counselling and care for the victims.
Keep the rest in trust for future cases, because this is not over yet.
Threaten FFers with the island too if they don't cop on pronto.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Special Education - Value for Money Audit
Batt O' Keeffe, the Minister of Education and Science, ordered an audit of all Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) in all schools in Ireland earlier this year. They are still at it. There are about 3,500 primary schools alone, and only about 20 SENOs. He says that he wants to make sure that the tax payer is getting value for money.
An SNA is appointed under very stringent conditions. A child must have a special need, a particular diagnosis and must basically have care needs (cannot do certain things for themselves, like go to the toilet, turn a page, eat, take medication, walk, see) and / or safety needs (will hurt themselves ar someone else) before they will be given an SNA. Often SNAs are shared between 2 or more children. There is no excess, I assure you. We need probably 10 times more SNAs in our schools, but this Audit is an attempt to cut, cut, cut.
The people carrying out the Audits are already completely run off their feet. They are the Special Education Needs Organisers (SENOs). Their job is to examine professional reports, visit the school, meet the child and the parents and then award supports for this special needs child, or not. The Minister has them running around doing audits and reviews, so their core job is on the back burner. That suits, because if they don't have time to award resources, well the Minister saves more money. Meanwhile, the special needs children have no support in school and suffer immeasurably, as do their parents, classmates and teachers.
Now, let's look at this Minister and the value for money HE is giving the tax payer? He was in Ballingeary, Co. Cork last Sunday canvassing for his son who is running for Cork County Council - Batt handed over the seat to his son a few years ago. How nice of him.
You might say - so what if he was in Ballingeary canvassing for his son! What he does in his own free time is his own business!
Ok, fair enough! BUT, he had his big state car, his driver, armed bodyguards and 3 or 4 other cars full of men with him in a convoy!! Knocking on doors in a small village in County Cork, asking for votes for his son. IS THIS VALUE FOR MONEY? The driver and detectives were probably on double or triple time for the Sunday?? That trip out would probably have paid an SNA for a few months? This particular village has one of its own, Jerry O' Sullivan, running as an Independent candidate in this election, so Batt's boy is unlikely to get any votes there despite his Daddy's day out. If Batt went to Ballingeary, he's probably canvassing elsewhere too.
MINISTER, THIS IS NOT VALUE FOR MONEY. IF YOU WANT TO CANVASS FOR YOUR SON, DRIVE YOURSELF, TAKE YOUR OWN CAR AND GO ALONE, IN YOUR OWN TIME. SHAME ON YOU!
AGAIN!
An SNA is appointed under very stringent conditions. A child must have a special need, a particular diagnosis and must basically have care needs (cannot do certain things for themselves, like go to the toilet, turn a page, eat, take medication, walk, see) and / or safety needs (will hurt themselves ar someone else) before they will be given an SNA. Often SNAs are shared between 2 or more children. There is no excess, I assure you. We need probably 10 times more SNAs in our schools, but this Audit is an attempt to cut, cut, cut.
The people carrying out the Audits are already completely run off their feet. They are the Special Education Needs Organisers (SENOs). Their job is to examine professional reports, visit the school, meet the child and the parents and then award supports for this special needs child, or not. The Minister has them running around doing audits and reviews, so their core job is on the back burner. That suits, because if they don't have time to award resources, well the Minister saves more money. Meanwhile, the special needs children have no support in school and suffer immeasurably, as do their parents, classmates and teachers.
Now, let's look at this Minister and the value for money HE is giving the tax payer? He was in Ballingeary, Co. Cork last Sunday canvassing for his son who is running for Cork County Council - Batt handed over the seat to his son a few years ago. How nice of him.
You might say - so what if he was in Ballingeary canvassing for his son! What he does in his own free time is his own business!
Ok, fair enough! BUT, he had his big state car, his driver, armed bodyguards and 3 or 4 other cars full of men with him in a convoy!! Knocking on doors in a small village in County Cork, asking for votes for his son. IS THIS VALUE FOR MONEY? The driver and detectives were probably on double or triple time for the Sunday?? That trip out would probably have paid an SNA for a few months? This particular village has one of its own, Jerry O' Sullivan, running as an Independent candidate in this election, so Batt's boy is unlikely to get any votes there despite his Daddy's day out. If Batt went to Ballingeary, he's probably canvassing elsewhere too.
MINISTER, THIS IS NOT VALUE FOR MONEY. IF YOU WANT TO CANVASS FOR YOUR SON, DRIVE YOURSELF, TAKE YOUR OWN CAR AND GO ALONE, IN YOUR OWN TIME. SHAME ON YOU!
AGAIN!
Friday, May 08, 2009
That Linehan gene strikes again?
Those Linehans (Conor, Brians Jr and Sr, and Auntie Mary too) are great for opening their mouths and letting any old thing flop out.
According to www.kildarestreet.com, in an attempt at glossing over Batt O' Keeffe's axing of vital supports for special needs children, Conor Linehan explained to the Dáil that -
"The mainstream approach to those with mild general learning disability is universally understood by educators to be the correct approach to this learning disability, which is general and mild by its nature".
What?
I am an educator. I don't understand any such thing, of itself, as a stand alone statement, without further supports. I support inclusion, but it has to be supported inclusion. We do not have supported inclusion in our schools, we have inclusion on the cheap.
A mild general learning disability IS NOT what it says on the tin, as Linehan makes out! It certainly is not MILD, as in not very serious, as Conor Linehan infers. This is a serious and a life-long learning disability.
In layperson's terms (this is for you, Conor!)-
Children can have a (1) high IQ; (2) an average IQ; (3) a low IQ; (4) a very low IQ and (5) an IQ which is difficult to measure.
Children who have been diagnosed as having a mild learning disability fit in to category (3). It is a LEARNING DISABILITY! This LD needs specialist teaching and support. Placing such a child into a mainstream class does absolutely nothing for them, they don't breathe in intelligence from other children in the class. They need careful and caring teaching. Class teachers find it really, really, really hard to cater for Batt's increased class sizes, not to mind catering for children with SEN as well.
Don't fall for FF's claims that their record in special education is fantabulous! It is NOT. Yes, provision for special ed has improved very much since 1998, but that is because it was virtually non-existent prior to that year. FF got their act together, because parents like e.g. Kathy Sinnott dragged them off to court! Today, in 2009, the special ed provision in Ireland is still bottom of the pile. It is a disgrace! The most that this FF crowd will give to a special needs child is FIVE hours of specialist teaching A WEEK. Yes, I did say a week! These FFers TOOK AWAY support hours (2 and a half hours per week) from pupils with Mild learning disabilities in mainstream classes in 2004/5. They also removed support hours (two and a half per week)from pupils with dyslexia! (The Minister who did this was Noel Dempsey. I will never forgive him for it). Those hours were miserably inadequate, but they were better than nothing. These children now have NOTHING, NO ENTITLEMENT TO ANY SUPPORT TEACHING, unless they are lucky enough to be in a special class, but now Batt is axing those.
Don't fall for FF's claims that these children will get support under the general allocation model. That's another crock! These children have NO ENTITLEMENT to any support in mainstream schools under FF's rules. What happens is that schools stretch and stretch their support teachers as best as they can in order to sqeeze in these children if at all possible. Schools are so over-stretched though that it just is not always possible. For a fact, the children do not get the amount of support that they need, which in my professional opinion is at LEAST one hour per day, every day.
The amazing thing is that when these children transfer to secondary school (if they do) then they DO get support teaching hours there. How typically FF stupid is that?!! It's in primary school that the foundation should be built for the child.
I am so disillusioned with this Government. They are not fit to govern. Dempsey stole support hours from learning disabled children in the middle of the boom years! Batt stole what was left.
Shame on ye all.
Shame on those who voted against the FG motion yesterday.
Shame on those yellow greens!
Shame on the FFers who spoke against the motion and showed that they hadn't a clue about this issue.
I work in this area every day. My pupils are fantastic, but they are not getting anywhere near the support that they need in mainstream schools. It is very unjust.
Don't worry, Conor, the boot up the backside we will give you, and the other Linehans,and the yellow greens shortly will only be MILD.................
According to www.kildarestreet.com, in an attempt at glossing over Batt O' Keeffe's axing of vital supports for special needs children, Conor Linehan explained to the Dáil that -
"The mainstream approach to those with mild general learning disability is universally understood by educators to be the correct approach to this learning disability, which is general and mild by its nature".
What?
I am an educator. I don't understand any such thing, of itself, as a stand alone statement, without further supports. I support inclusion, but it has to be supported inclusion. We do not have supported inclusion in our schools, we have inclusion on the cheap.
A mild general learning disability IS NOT what it says on the tin, as Linehan makes out! It certainly is not MILD, as in not very serious, as Conor Linehan infers. This is a serious and a life-long learning disability.
In layperson's terms (this is for you, Conor!)-
Children can have a (1) high IQ; (2) an average IQ; (3) a low IQ; (4) a very low IQ and (5) an IQ which is difficult to measure.
Children who have been diagnosed as having a mild learning disability fit in to category (3). It is a LEARNING DISABILITY! This LD needs specialist teaching and support. Placing such a child into a mainstream class does absolutely nothing for them, they don't breathe in intelligence from other children in the class. They need careful and caring teaching. Class teachers find it really, really, really hard to cater for Batt's increased class sizes, not to mind catering for children with SEN as well.
Don't fall for FF's claims that their record in special education is fantabulous! It is NOT. Yes, provision for special ed has improved very much since 1998, but that is because it was virtually non-existent prior to that year. FF got their act together, because parents like e.g. Kathy Sinnott dragged them off to court! Today, in 2009, the special ed provision in Ireland is still bottom of the pile. It is a disgrace! The most that this FF crowd will give to a special needs child is FIVE hours of specialist teaching A WEEK. Yes, I did say a week! These FFers TOOK AWAY support hours (2 and a half hours per week) from pupils with Mild learning disabilities in mainstream classes in 2004/5. They also removed support hours (two and a half per week)from pupils with dyslexia! (The Minister who did this was Noel Dempsey. I will never forgive him for it). Those hours were miserably inadequate, but they were better than nothing. These children now have NOTHING, NO ENTITLEMENT TO ANY SUPPORT TEACHING, unless they are lucky enough to be in a special class, but now Batt is axing those.
Don't fall for FF's claims that these children will get support under the general allocation model. That's another crock! These children have NO ENTITLEMENT to any support in mainstream schools under FF's rules. What happens is that schools stretch and stretch their support teachers as best as they can in order to sqeeze in these children if at all possible. Schools are so over-stretched though that it just is not always possible. For a fact, the children do not get the amount of support that they need, which in my professional opinion is at LEAST one hour per day, every day.
The amazing thing is that when these children transfer to secondary school (if they do) then they DO get support teaching hours there. How typically FF stupid is that?!! It's in primary school that the foundation should be built for the child.
I am so disillusioned with this Government. They are not fit to govern. Dempsey stole support hours from learning disabled children in the middle of the boom years! Batt stole what was left.
Shame on ye all.
Shame on those who voted against the FG motion yesterday.
Shame on those yellow greens!
Shame on the FFers who spoke against the motion and showed that they hadn't a clue about this issue.
I work in this area every day. My pupils are fantastic, but they are not getting anywhere near the support that they need in mainstream schools. It is very unjust.
Don't worry, Conor, the boot up the backside we will give you, and the other Linehans,and the yellow greens shortly will only be MILD.................
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