A noble cause ...but now isn’t time to protest
I UNEQUIVOCALLY condemn the killing of George Floyd because a police officer pressed a knee on his neck in Minneapolis, resulting in his death, which was witnessed by millions globally.
But I ask: should we really be protesting in Dublin about police brutality and racism in the US at risk of widespread noncompliance with Covid-19 prevention regulations in Ireland? Why didn’t the gardaí intervene? Why did the gardaí fail to enforce Covid-19 regulations on public gatherings? Who gave permission for this demonstration to take place?
I think before we start protesting about racism and police brutality in the US, we need to get our own house in order and stop putting the lives of Irish citizens at risk with large public gatherings that threaten to assist the spread of the viral menace plaguing our times.
We seriously need to reflect. Do we have regulations to keep us safe during a pandemic? Are we all to abide with these regulations? If the regulations are not enforced equitably, what’s the point in having them? If this type of disregard for the current efforts to restrain Covid-19 is to continue, we might as well just let the virus take its natural course and dispense with the regulations, with the catastrophic consequences that may bring.
We absolutely need to continue to unambiguously condemn racism. There is a certain incongruity at play here, however. Let’s all protest about one rancid social issue racism, whilst risking the health and wellbeing of many citizens at the same time.
We have all worked so hard, showing incredible solidarity to restrain Covid-19 in Ireland. Now is not the time to risk a second surge with large unregulated gatherings. It was such gatherings in 1919 that contributed largely to the second wave of Spanish flu, with global fatal consequences. PAUL HORAN, Assistant Professor, School of Nursing & Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin.
Open universities!
THE move made by the Government to cancel the Leaving Certificate is unprecedented, as no doubt is the responsibility now assigned to post-primary teachers, school managers and the State Examinations Commission to calculate students’ grades.
These are extraordinary times and thus measures taken are such. The points system is predicated on places available for third-level courses and applicant demand.
In employing the calculated grades measure, the points system can continue to operate. This system has become a rite of passage for students, but perhaps more of a necessity for the third-level institutions. Those in the post-primary sector are playing their part and students have played their part, does it not behove third-level institutions to do likewise?
Many in the media have insisted this pandemic should induce a re-think of the Leaving Cert as a means of assessment. It should be worth noting that the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) has already begun a review of senior cycle subjects with the intention of reform. As a consequence of this pandemic, the registration of international students is likely to be lower next year than previously expected. This offers an ample opportunity for third-level institutions to increase places for national candidates on impacted courses.
The University of Cambridge also recently announced that lectures will be delivered online for the forthcoming academic year, and Irish institutions will adopt a similar approach.
This endeavour naturally poses challenges, but one does wonder if