Now schools to reopen on April 9 at earliest
MINISTER for Education, Joe McHugh has confirmed schools will not reopen on Monday due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar previously announced that all schools and colleges would reopen on March 30, in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.
However, under new measures introduced by the Government, schools and colleges will not reopen until Thursday, April 9, at the earliest.
Mr McHugh, right, said he is focused on making sure the Junior and Leaving Certificate exams take place later on in the year.
Mr Varadkar encouraged students to continue studying for their State exams as there was a ‘very good chance that they would happen’ but also said the Minister for Education had a ‘contingency plan’ if they were cancelled. Mr McHugh told Galway Bay FM: ‘I think we owe it to those young people who are studying and putting in the effort to see this through, to try to have these exams this year. When I say this year, I mean the dates that are defined for this year. That’s what we are working towards. ‘My commitment to the students and for the students who are maybe having their breakfast this morning and maybe getting ready to study and really, really putting in such an effort, my commitment to them, and the department’s commitment is, we want to make those exams happen,’ Mr McHugh said. The Education Minister said health experts would have an input in the department’s decision-making.
‘Obviously, we are going to be influenced and directed by the health experts. We don’t know where we are going to be in terms of the peak of this virus.’
The Teachers Union of Ireland accepted the move by the Department of Education and commended pupils’ engagement in the midst of the coronavirus crisis.
TUI president Seamus Lahart said: ‘We appreciate that this decision is a necessary one as our society seeks to tackle the huge and developing challenges posed by the coronavirus. The health and safety of our people, young and old, must always be the principal consideration.
‘These are exceptional circumstances and we thank teachers and lecturers for their creativity, application and ongoing commitment to students. The public can be assured that educators will continue to do their work to the highest standards,’ he added.