The Ombudsman for Children said the Government did not put children at the centre of decisions on education, and asks it to dream big for Ireland's recovery. Dr Niall Muldoon sits down with news2day on the anniversary of school closures due to the pandemic. On 12 March 2020, then taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced that schools, colleges and childcare facilities had to close to "flatten the curve" of the novel coronavirus.
Teachers rushed to send pupils home with enough books and worksheets to get through a week or two of learning at home. As time went on and school gates stayed shut, everyone became more familiar with the term homeschooling, and Covid-19.