Concern over professional relationships of staff

Gonzaga College, Dublin

A FEE-PAYING boys’ school was told by Department of Education and Skills inspectors to sort out staff relationship issues that were putting at risk the necessary focus on students.

The comments followed a Whole School Evaluation at the 550-pupil Gonzaga College in Ranelagh, Dublin, last May that found most aspects of school’s governance were highly effective, but expressed concern about “some unresolved issues in professional relationships among staff”, which had “the potential to detract from the necessary focus on students”.

The recently published report had many positive findings,including a management team that fostered a culture in which learning flourished and highly effective student care structures and systems for academic monitoring.

Overall, the quality of teaching and learning was described as “good, with some highly effective practices”, but also found areas requiring improvement. Inspectors reported that opportunities for students to work collaboratively were not observed in many lessons and, while levels of student engagement were generally good, some did not participate actively. According to the report, the principal and deputy principal led the school effectively, but, in a comment on broader relationship issues, it calls on the trustees board, principal, deputy principal and teachers to “work as a community to bring about a resolution, in keeping with the ethos of the school”.

In its response, the school said it was “fully committed to working with staff, students and parents to implement the recommendations”.