Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Dublin Live
Dublin Live
National
Ferghal Blaney & Roisin Butler

Norma Foley rules out no homework debate following President's appeal

Minister for Education Norma Foley has ruled out scrapping homework after the debate sparked by comments from President Michael D Higgins.

The President surprised the nation with calls for homework to be abolished. He told viewers of RTE's news2day, a current affairs programme for children, that he would like the school day to end for young people once they had left the building, allowing them to engage in more activities.

However, Ms Foley has ruled out a debate with the President on the issue. She reiterated that individual schools are responsible for their own homework policies in her statement.

READ MORE: 'It's a risk' - Urgent calls to remove capsized ship in Dublin dock

Ms Foley told the Irish Mirror: "It would not be appropriate for a Government Minister to engage in public debate with the office of the President. Schools are in of themselves places where creative pursuits are cultivated, nurtured and encouraged and that creativity may also be reflected in homework.”

Fine Gael's Minister for State Neale Richmond also asked Ms Foley in the Dail chamber if research would be carried out on the merits of terminating homework. Ms Foley confirmed that the Department of Educatioh had not commissioned research on the matter.

What do you think? Should homework be mandatory for school pupils, or should the school day end at the gates? Let us know in the comments.

Read next:

Sign up to the Dublin Live Newsletter to get all the latest Dublin news straight to your inbox.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.