Despite the fact that a school in Tallaght was opened to meet the demands in the area, Scoil Aoife boasts just one student since it opened earlier this week.
The school was opened due to demand in the area for a facility to meet the growing educational needs of the community, yet residents in the area remain baffled as only one female pupil is enrolled.
The junior infants student is the only pupil to have crossed the threshold of the newly-opened facility so far this term.
Across the country, the teacher to student ratio debate continues to rage – an issue that is certainly not going to be a problem in Scoil Aoife in the short term! With only one teacher in place at the moment, an enrollment of 20 students is generally required before a second teacher can be assigned.
The Department of Education insisted that there are enough children in the area to warrant the opening of a new school, according to the Irish Examiner.
It was also stated that it is ‘not unusual for new schools to grow from low numbers in the beginning’.
New schools’ enrollment is usually looked at over a projection of a number of years. Although parents in the area may have already registered their children in different schools this year, it is expected that enrollment in Scoil Aoife in the coming weeks should increase, moving on to a larger rise next year.
The school, which operates from a youth and community centre, is being run under the Dublin and Dún Laoghaire Education and Training Board. It will be run as a co-educational and multi-denominational primary school.
Scoil Aoife is set to have its enrollment come under review next week.
