INTO Congress 2006 Diary - Joseph Fogarty
Diary by Joseph Fogarty.
Background:
On the Irish educational calendar there are few events to compare with the annual teachers’ conferences which take place each Easter. With thousands of delegates, Ministerial speeches and national media coverage, these meetings often set the educational agenda for the coming year. This year the INTO held its conference in Killarney and the Campaign for Commercial-Free Education was in attendance too.
In the weeks prior to Congress, the INTO had noted “There is increasing concern among teachers about the fact that more and more companies and organizations are targeting schools to market products”. A consultation paper on the Promotion of Commercial Products in Schools had been prepared by the INTO and a draft sent to the Department of Education and Science.
April 17th
The first site to greet the 750 delegates as they made their way to the auditorium was the bright “For Sale” t-shirts of members of the Campaign for Commercial-Free Education. Niall, Allan, Anna, Gregor and I stood in the glass-enclosed walkway handing out a specially produced leaflet, chatting with teachers and explaining our Campaign. The feedback from delegates and guests was tremendously positive with many stopping to explain their own reasons for objecting to commercialism in schools.
Our motion on Commercialism didn’t appear on the initial agenda and so we requested a meeting with the Standing Orders Committee to make our case for its inclusion. The Campaign then adjourned to the Hotel Bar where I did my best to convince delegates from Wexford as to why they shouldn’t entertain any commercial schemes. Retired sane, sober and sensible to bed, ready for a big day tomorrow.
April 18th
The second day of Congress involves a speech by the Minister for Education and Science and the auditorium was packed in anticipation of Mary Hanafin’s visit. We positioned ourselves the hall to be ready when the speeches were over. As hundreds of teachers emerged, all on the look-out for coffee and biscuits, we circulated and got peoples’ views. Particular plaudits go to Allan and Anna who showed a missionary zeal to raise the subject and get people talking about commercialism.
It was time to meet the Standing Orders Committee but I had just come across a teacher who explained that she happily used Primary Times in her English lessons. This seemed absolutely crazy to me and I would have dearly loved to discuss the subject at length with her. But we all had to line up, as if outside the principal’s office, to meet the Standing Orders Committee. Great thanks are due to the members of Dublin City North branch for their assistance and solidarity in accompanying us and speaking on our behalf during the meeting. The Committee themselves had the job of deciding which motions would be added to the agenda and exhibited the kinds of poker faces which could win serious money. We hoped for the best.
On the way back to the auditorium I took the opportunity to speak directly to the Minister who was doing a meet-and-greet. She had already been presented with a leaftet (Good man Allan!) and so I asked her why she had endorsed the Independent Newspapers “Building for the Future” scheme. The Minister replied that it was a “good community scheme”. When I brought up the quota stipulation, she said that schools didn’t have to enter if they didn’t want to. I protested that surely the Minister for Education shouldn’t be lending her name to a scheme which was off-limits to children who bought the wrong newspaper. The reply again was that this was a “good community scheme” and that was all I was going to get.
At 4.30, and the day’s Congress business over, we made our way for the lounge where we had advertised a meeting for all interested in Commercialism. A sizable group of teachers from all over the country gathered for what was a heartening and encouraging event. Hearing from principals and teachers who have themselves taken a strong stance against commercial interference proved a high-point of the Congress and showed that our Campaign really was expressing a common concern among teachers. To conclude a positive day, we got word later that evening that our motion was down for inclusion on the final day’s agenda.
April 19th
The final day of Congress was going to be a busy one. We had submitted a question to the INTO Central Executive Committee asking whether they had received any response from the Department of Education and Science and whether they intended to issue any guidelines on Commercialism themselves. In answer to this, we were told that a meeting had taken place with DES officials and that the INTO planned to consult with others before drawing up its guidelines. This appeared a positive step, but there was deep unease about the union’s desire to discuss commercialism with business interests such as IBEC and marketing organisations. We had imagined that the INTO would want to listen to its own members around the country and draw up a policy to reflect their views. This, we felt, would properly reflect their aim of “Serving Education” and disregard any commercially-motivated perspectives.
Further conversation with delegates during the day revealed more schools who have taken an individual decision to reject commercial schemes. These schools would be contacted after Congress to recognise their stance through the Campaign website.
As the clock ticked on and several motions remained on the Congress agenda, it appeared as if there would be no time to consider the motion on Commercialism. Motions not voted on are annulled according to INTO rules and so it was time for some quick thinking on our behalf. Colm and Niall requested that the chairperson allow a straight vote on the issue. With just seconds remaining in the 2006 Congress, motion 124 was proposed, seconded and voted upon. Just about everyone in the auditorium was aware of its content and the subject we had been raising over the three days; we waited to see how the assembled delegates would respond….
124. Congress:
a. deplores the underfunding of education which has starved schools of resources and public funding; PASSEDb. expresses its concern at the growing commercialism of education and the growing number of schemes that require teachers to promote products in classrooms; PASSED
c. instructs the CEC to immediately devise and circulate a policy on commercialism in schools that will support teachers promoting a commercial-free education in primary school classrooms; PASSED
d. instructs the CEC to launch a campaign to bring education spending into line with our European counterparts. PASSED
Entire motion: PASSED
To applause and cheers, motion 124 was approved and the leadership of the INTO given a clear mandate to take action on commercial activity in schools. This brought to a successful conclusion a busy and productive Congress for the Campaign for Commercial-Free Education.
Thanks are due to Niall, Allan, Anna, Gregor, Colm, Deirdre, Michael, Dublin City North branch and all who helped us in Killarney. The Campaign made significant progress during the three days and we can look forward to building on this in the remaining months of the school year.
