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The emerald of our isle
Education is the key to rebuilding our economy.
I could stand up, click my heels together three times and say "There’s nothing like the Celtic Tiger" but it’s not going to explode again anytime soon. Not a day passes by in our current economic climate without three well-known syllables being heard: re-cess-ion. There is tension constantly engulfing us as we wonder how the government will tackle this problematic predicament. One thing’s for certain; the current budget, rather than education, needs to be cut.
If the public sector is a darts board, education is the bull’s-eye. I wholeheartedly agree that it as an area we need to target, but for entirely different reasons than at present. Education is the key to rebuilding our economy. It is a basic right every child is entitled to, but this right has been infringed upon by the recent budget cuts. By increasing the student:teacher ratio in both primary schools and secondary schools, hundreds of students’ academic environments are being damaged. Forcing teachers to accommodate larger classes reduces the attention each individual student receives. Therefore, the quality of education received suffers and the academic standard is lowered.
The proposal of introducing college fees is also ludicrous. Access to free education is what opened a window of opportunity to those unable to open the door. This access has provided us with the highly skilled work force found in Ireland today. It was a key attraction for industries choosing to locate in Ireland. Without it how can we entice industries again?
You can say I’m exaggerating, or that I’m merely a bitter student that feels hard done by, but you can’t ignore the consequences already surfacing. In January 2009 there was an estimated figure of 36,000 professionals unemployed. By June 2011, that figure had risen to 14.2% of the population! There has also been a request for as many as 13 new social offices to be opened to help cope with the increasing numbers signing onto the live register (the dole). As more and more industries, big and small, pull down their shutters for good, these numbers are only going to get worse. Blocking off access to education will only raise the number of young adults signing onto the dole straight after school. This ‘solution’ the government has concocted will result in them spending even more money in the social welfare sector.
Without taking a single penny from a deserving sector, money can be saved. Corruption is not an unknown concept across the globe and Ireland is no exception. Millions of Euro are left unaccounted for every year because our finances in general are not properly monitored. As a future tax payer it makes me sick to think that my hard-earned money could be left trickling down the drain. Each year, before the annual budget is made money is spent frivolously in many sectors to maintain their desired estimates. This is done to ensure their sector doesn’t suffer a cut. This means that money is being allocated to certain areas needlessly and irresponsibly. Money that could be saved so areas such as education wouldn’t be paying the price.
Education is a key we cannot afford to lose. Taking it away will only lock doors further along the way. I can’t help but wonder what route will be left for me and my fellow students to follow if funding cuts keep blocking off our roads. We are the future of this country and we are the future of this economy. It is not fair for us to pay the price of our government’s mistakes. Undoubtedly, education is the emerald of this isle.
By: Ruth Ní Bheoláin
