This article is from page 4 of the 2008-09-16 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 4 JPG
has learned.
This is despite a number of ground- breaking developments made in the provision of integrated education in Gort over the past decade and the ad- mission by the Minister for Integra- tion Conor Lenihan, earlier this year that the village was a blueprint for successful integration in Ireland.
Founder of the Gort Brazilian As- sociation, Frank Murray has said that the best method for integrating
children is in one class, despite calls from Fine Gael last month for chil- dren to be segregated.
“The best method is to keep the kids together. The schools here in Gort have had no guidance on this issue and have had to figure it out themselves. There were no guide- lines in place here when the Brazil- lans started coming here ten years ago or more, so the teachers here de- veloped a groundbreaking system of their own,” said Mr Murray.
‘After the argument on segregation and apartheid a few weeks ago that cause such a storm, the government response was that research was being carried out on the issue. But I con- tacted all of the schools in Gort, be-
cause they are cutting edge in terms of integration policy, and no one had come near them.
“You have to wonder about the money that is being spent on this re- search and how effective it is going to be if they don’t consult the main players involved in integration in Ire- land.”
According to the Gort Brazilian Association, if a scenario 1s handled incorrectly it can actually lead to an increase 1n racism instead of integra- nln
“It can sometimes cause conflict with local parents if they fell that their kids are being held back, espe- cially in secondary school. That is a situation which can cause friction in
the community and can lead to rac- ism,’ continued Mr Murray.
“Tt is an awful strain on the teach- ers, they are the forgotten people in this situation. We had thought that the numbers of migrant children at- tending the primary schools here would go down this year because of the economic situation but they have been overwhelming.
‘That was a surprise, it shows how difficult it is to be on top of this situ- ation which is changing all the time. Because of this it’s a bigger shame that the people doing these surveys do not see fit to contact the teachers in Gort who have made some great innovations over the last ten years.”