“New Editions of Schoolbooks Lead to High Costs for Parents and Unnecessary Waste” – Matthews

Deputy Steven Matthews, Green Party TD for Wicklow, has written to the Minister for Education, Norma Foley TD, to ask if she will take action to reduce the number of new editions of schoolbooks required by students each year. Discussing the cost of new schoolbooks, Deputy Matthews said:

“Having to purchase new editions of school textbooks each year places an unnecessary burden on families who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis. I have been contacted by many parents and staff in schools in Wicklow who have been impacted by this issue and would like to see more sustainable practices when it comes to the search for schoolbooks.

“As well as local initiatives that encourage the re-use and rental of schoolbooks, more action is needed at a national level to address the number of new editions of books published each year. Where there has not been a change to the curriculum or the methods of assessment, bringing out new editions of textbooks and workbooks is an unnecessary practice that makes it impossible to hand down books to students in future years.

“I have written to the Minister for Education, Norma Foley TD, to raise these concerns. While I welcome the increase in funding over recent years for schoolbook grants, this is not available for all families and many parents still have to spend hundreds of euro on new schoolbooks. This is also fundamentally a Green issue – as the older editions of these texts often end up unused or in landfill.

“As TD for Wicklow, my priority is to reduce the cost of education for families and prevent the waste of resources. I am calling for a review of our current publishing practices to ensure that schoolbooks can be re-used and passed down to other students. If any school is interested in the sustainable management of schoolbooks, I would encourage them to get in touch with me directly and I will offer any support I can”, concluded Deputy Matthews.