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 NICIE finds the proposals flawed on a number of levels:

 ·        the segregated nature of this educational system is neither acknowledged nor discussed;

 

·        the role of education in building a ‘shared future’ is not addressed;

·        the document seems to be based on the assumption that Catholic parents will automatically prefer a separate education for their children which integrated schools and public opinion surveys show is clearly not the case;

·        creative mechanisms for sharing, through Area Learning Communities, are not examined; international examples of joint Catholic – Protestant schools are not considered.

 

“Northern Ireland remains a divided society in which many Catholics and Protestants live separate lives. Therefore all of our institutions have a responsibility to play a part in building a shared society,” comments Noreen Campbell, CEO, NICIE. “The Catholic Commission’s document on Post Primary Review seems to be devoted to the idea that the Catholic ethos can only be preserved by separate schools, instead of looking to promote reconciliation through building a shared education system which nurtures all traditions equally. Only with such a system can we begin to br eak down the divisions which still exist in our society.”

 

 

“Whilst we welcome the scope and range of the PPRCE discussion document and the proposed phasing out of selection, we are disappointed that the issue of integration and sharing has not been addressed,” concludes Noreen Campbell. “We endorse the view that all children are entitled to a first-class education through non-selective, all-ability provision. But we passionately believe that Post-Primary reorganisation should first and foremost be based on an imaginative approach which looks to build a peaceful, shared future for all communities. NICIE hopes, through its response to this consultation document, to promote a wider debate about the reorganisation and development of Post-Primary education.”