A Liveline caller has revealed that she is planning on keeping her daughter home from school if a minute's silence for Ashling Murphy goes ahead.
It comes as teaching unions across Ireland are asking schools to partake in the tribute in memory of the murdered teacher from Tullamore, Co Offaly.
Leanne phoned into the popular afternoon show to share her thoughts on having a minute’s silence in schools.
And the mother-of-two told host Joe Duffy that she didn’t want her eight-year-old daughter to be present for such a tribute.
She said: “I’m just concerned that when the minute’s silence happens that she’ll find out about this horrific tragedy.”
Leanne and her family have chosen not to tell the young girl about what happened to Ashling, due to the nature of it.
Her son, who is 12, has already heard about it and the listener said that he became worried about his own safety upon finding out what happened.
Leanne said: “I’m very concerned this will become a topic of conversation tomorrow at schools.
“I would rather be there with my child when she finds out something like this and I would rather that it wasn’t left to a teacher to try and explain it to a lot of children.”
“It’s a beautiful idea but I’m really worried about it,” she explained.
Leanne said that she will not send her daughter to school if it does go ahead.
“Childhood is so precious and I think this would be a moment that she would never forget if she found out about it,” she said.
“My child idolises her teacher. She loves school. She identifies with it so I just think it would be hugely traumatic for her and if I can avoid it, it may only be for a week, but if I can avoid it, I will.”
Leanne explained that she would be “concerned” about the dialogue amongst children in school for the day.
“While I think it’s worthwhile, I think we can all commit to remembering Ashling and people who have died but I just think, if at all possible, that maybe could be managed at home,” she said.
Other listeners called in to say that they disagreed with her point of view, with one mother saying that she dealt with it by telling her seven-year-old that there were “bad people in the world”.
Teaching unions in Ireland are asking all schools to observe a minute’s silence to coincide with the funeral of Ashling Murphy.
The INTO, ASTI, FÓRSA and the TUI have asked that schools take part in a minutes silence in her memory.
Ashling, who died following the attack on Wednesday evening, will be laid to rest in the Lowertown Cemetary following funeral mass in St Brigid’s Church in Mount Bolus at 11 am tomorrow.
