President Michal D Higgins has called for homework to be banned.
The country’s favourite leader has given hope to a new generation of students that the bane of their afterschool evenings could be scrapped.
President Higgins argues that this would make time for young people to engage in more creative pursuits outside school hours.
The former Arts Minister believes that school activities should end at the school gate.
He was speaking to RTE’s news2day current affairs and news programme for children on the occasion of the programme’s 20th birthday.
When asked what his opinion of homework President Higgins said: “I think myself, really that the time at home, and the time in the school is an educational experience and it should get finished at the school and people should be able to use their time for other creative things.”
To mark the show’s two decades on air, students from St Kevin’s National School, Littleton, County Tipperary put questions from RTÉ news2day viewers to President Higgins at Áras an Uachtaráin.
In a wide-ranging interview, the children asked the President questions like, what was your favourite sport when you were in school?
When you were nine years old what did you want to be?
And when did you decide you wanted to be President?
The students also asked the President about his dogs, his official trips abroad, his favourite subject in school, differences between now and when he was a child and his favourite book. The President also spoke to the children about his love of handball and the importance of friendship in their lives.
RTÉ news2day will broadcast some of the President’s interview as part of Friday afternoon’s birthday celebrations at 4.20pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ News channel and the full interview will be available later on Friday evening on the RTÉ Player.
In a message to the children of Ireland and the viewers of RTÉ news2day, President Michael D. Higgins gave this advice: “To stay curious about everything and I think it’s important to make sure you don’t miss the joy of sharing information.
“And I think an important thing is friendship and to make sure that there’s no one left without friendship and that people belong. And we will all do individual things... but I think friendships that you make will in fact always be great memories and that is so important.
“And also have the courage to stand your own ground and let other children be allowed the space of standing their ground too because none of us are the same.
“We’re all unique but at the same time we have a lot going for us.”
President Higgins also encouraged the children of Ireland to speak the Irish language.
He encouraged them to speak Irish in a fun way and to feel free to use whatever bits of the language that they have.
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