Anne Looney, Dean of Dublin City University’s Institute of Education, has warned the Oireachtas Education Committee that making Religion an optional subject for students in ETB second-level schools has forced trainee teachers to look for work abroad, according to an article in the Irish Examiner. But Ms. Looney, a graduate ...

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Recently on RTE, in a debate with Atheist Ireland’s Michael Nugent, the General Secretary of the Teachers Union of Ireland said his Union would refuse to even try to implement the new Directive allowing students to choose another subject instead of religion in ETB schools. The TUI’s John MacGabhann gave ...

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Atheist Ireland is today publishing a new comprehensive report on religious discrimination across the ETB Sector, including Community National Schools. The Education and Training Board (ETB) Sector presents itself as the alternative to denominational schools in Ireland but in reality, these schools can be just as Catholic as those managed ...

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Today on RTE, in a debate with Atheist Ireland's Michael Nugent, the General Secretary of the Teachers Union of Ireland said his Union would refuse to even try to implement the new Directive allowing students to choose another subject instead of religion in ETB schools. The TUI's John MacGabhann gave ...

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The new Directive issued by the Department of Education gives practical application to the right of all students to opt out of Religious Education. That is not a new right. It was already there, but it was not properly implemented. The new part of this directive is not the right ...

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Atheist Ireland welcomes the Department of Education’s new directive on religious instruction in second-level ETB schools. It is the most significant recognition of the constitutional and human rights of atheist, minority faith, and secular families in Irish schools since Atheist Ireland was founded. These rights have always existed, and now ...

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Finally, in ETB schools, a proper opt-out from religion seems about to happen, with alternative subjects being offered at the start of the year, based on proposals that Atheist Ireland has been intensively lobbying for in recent years. The Irish Times has seen records of a coming Ministerial Circular that ...

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The Minister for Education has told Solidarity TD Ruth Coppinger that he will review the practice of ETB schools paying the Roman Catholic Church to train students in faith leadership. Last month Atheist Ireland revealed details of these controversial courses, that train some students to evangelise others, through our freedom ...

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