Traveller children are still being segregated in school, North Cork report finds

The Travellers of North Cork report, undertaken by Patricia McGrath at Adult Continuing Education at University College Cork (UCC), found that discrimination can lead to parents masking their children’s Traveller identity in some cases.

One parent told the study that her son was one of a group of Traveller boys of “different ages, segregated from their own classes and placed together separately from the mainstream class". 

Another participant told the study: 

“I just learned... that they [the primary school] have a unit, a special classroom where they have segregated all Travellers.”

“They’ve taken them out of the mainstream, and they put them into a classroom of their own,” the person said, adding that this creates problems with transitioning to secondary school.

The report notes that the practice perpetuates the discrimination and stigma experienced by Travellers in school and in wider society as they are “othered” if they do not have the opportunity to mix with their settled peers.

“This is a very surprising and shocking finding, as one would expect that segregation of Traveller children in schools was a thing of the past,” the report stated.

“It is clearly an issue that needs to be addressed by schools and policymakers, along with reduced hours and inclusion.”

Reacting to the findings, Senator Eileen Flynn called on Education Minister Norma Foley to act on this "blatant discrimination". 

Speaking to the Irish Examiner, she said the findings were “absolutely appalling.” 

“It's not one bit surprising, unfortunately, in some schools," Senator Flynn said. "And our education system is still back in the '60s where they segregated members of the Travelling community."

“It’s not just an issue in this school, it is more widespread across the country.” 

She said: “This can’t happen, especially in 2023 and this is only the tip of the iceberg.

“The school is singling out children, putting Travellers into one classroom — that didn’t come from a good place." Senator Flynn added: 

I want to know who is going to be held accountable. I’d like to know what the children were doing during those hours. I could promise you they were probably colouring in. 

Participants in the study pointed out that, no matter how good some teachers are, others are “openly discriminating against and stereotyping Travellers as they are actively encouraging children to leave school once they reach the legal age of 16”.

Historically, Irish Traveller children have encountered significant disadvantages within the Irish education system, according to Patricia McGrath.

“Despite the Government’s commitment to reducing this disadvantage and improving progression rates to further and higher education, this research finds that barriers to education persist for Traveller children in primary and secondary schools," she said. 

"It is essential to address these challenges throughout a child’s life journey, ensuring schools have adequate resources to support Traveller children.

“With the necessary supports in place, Traveller children ought to transition successfully from primary to secondary schools, levelling the playing field to give them the opportunity to progress to further and higher education.”

The report makes 20 recommendations on how to improve the educational experience and rates of progression for Traveller children, including that all schools should have Traveller cultural awareness training.