On October 13th 2022, students across the country walked out of their lectures as a form of protest against the cost of living and accommodation crisis that is rippling through our country as of late. For many, this was a last ditch effort to lobby our government to take charge and help alleviate these costs and make university accessible to all. However, it seems to have fallen on deaf ears as we have yet to see any change as we push forward into Christmas. This is not simply a problem of the supply of accommodation or the rising cost of living. These are huge factors yes, but the inaccessibility of education in Ireland begins long before we get that CAO offer email and that begs the question; Is education accessible for all in Ireland or just for the fortunate?
According to data collected by the Irish times in 2022, 99.7 percent of students in fee paying schools progressed to third-level education in 2021 compared to 80 percent of those in non-fee paying schools and 62 percent of students from DEIS schools. The DEIS programme was launched in 2005 and is defined as “a more integrated approach to the issue of educational inclusion”. While we have seen some success with the DEIS programme with 62 percent of DEIS students progressing to third-level education in 2021 compared to 57 per cent in 2019, it is clear that social class and wealth still plays a part in accessing third level education. In total, there are 852 DEIS schools in Ireland, 194 of which are secondary schools, this appears to be largely disproportionate and begs the question: what happens to the students who were once in a DEIS school in primary school who then have those resources taken from them in secondary school? The fact of the matter is that not enough secondary schools across the country are being given the resources to facilitate these students and their needs, both educational and physical which then leads to these students falling through the cracks of our system meanwhile in a fee-paying school all of the students needs can be met due to the private funding they receive.
When students make it to third-level, they are faced with even more barriers which hinder their university experience both academic and social. We saw at the beginning of the year, students desperately looking for accommodation right up to the beginning of the semester especially in Dublin and Galway. Students are now facing long commutes or deferrals as they either cannot afford or cannot find accommodation near to their university with some student housing costing up to one thousand euro per month and on top of this students are required to pay their student contribution fee of three thousand euro per annum. With all of these rising costs, we have to wonder where else can the average student acquire such funds without working almost full-time hours each week on top of study, which is what a lot of students are doing at the moment. This is not supported by universities with some lecturers recommending students not to work in order to focus on their studies which would make one wonder whether they are out of touch with the times? If a portion of students are working 20 plus hours a week and another portion receive money from parents/family in order to fully focus on their studies, which group do you think is more likely to achieve higher results?
Overall, the average student of Ireland is suffering and while we tend to hyper focus on third-level education due to its cost and the current housing crisis, we cannot forget the state second level education is in at the moment. Fee paying schools are achieving higher results due to the disproportionate funds they receive in comparison to their non-fee paying schools and there are not nearly enough DEIS schools in the country to support students who need that extra push to achieve the results they have the potential to achieve whether this is access to a breakfast club, after school study or free lunches. These are basic needs that aren’t being fulfilled in our schools due to lack of funding. Meanwhile, if you have the wealth and support you can achieve anything you set your mind to ; Which once again begs the question; Is education for all or just the fortunate?