Irish schools’ guidance on other faiths

NEW GUIDELINES prepared by the Catholic Schools Partnership have been sent to Ireland’s 2,900 Catholic primary schools to help them cater for an increasingly diverse student body, writes Sarah Mac Donald.

Launching “Catholic Primary Schools in a Changing Ireland”, Fr Michael Drumm said one of the key challenges facing church primary schools is the need for a greater emphasis on inter-religious dialogue and reflection.

 Some 89 per cent of Irish primary schools are Catholic. The new guidelines provide suggestions on how to protect non-Catholic pupils and how to celebrate the diversity of faiths within the school community.

Fr Drumm said: “Catholic schools have adapted to demographic change with significant net migration into Ireland and many of them have led the way in integrating migrants into local communities.”