Reports that the Taoiseach has called for the working week in schools to be extended to 40 hours has been met with claims that teachers already put in more hours than this.

The Sunday Independent cited a letter sent to cabinet members by Enda Kenny that called for Education Minister Ruairi Quinn to increase hours so that productivity is boosted across the public sector.

However, the Teachers' Union of Ireland claims its members already carry out between 43 and 46 hours of work per week.

Meanwhile, general secretary of ASTI Pat King told the Journal: "Irish second-level teachers spend 735 hours per annum in their classrooms compared to the OECD average of approximately 681 hours."

He claimed that schools have lost a considerable amount of funding, which means that teachers have to do a lot more with fewer resources.

Mr King added that the amount of administrative and legal duties that schools and teachers are required to carry out has increased significantly over the past decade.

Written by Donal Walsh

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