Common Queries
How do I contact the school?
To contact the school, call 066 9761246 or email . During term time, the main office in the school is open between 9.00 a.m. and 4.00p.m.
Who are the main front-of-house personnel?
Margaret O’Sullivan and Eileen O’Hagan
What are the opening hours of the school?
School is open from 8.15am until 5pm. Your child needs to be in school by 8.50am
How does the school communicate with home?
The school uses a variety of methods to communicate with home:
- We mainly use the school app to communicate with parents and students
- The school website is a further information resource, e.g details of booklists are placed on the website in May/June every year.
- Letters to families are also sometimes given to students
- The school also uses text message to communicate with home
- Teachers regularly communicate with families through the student journal
- Telephone calls are also used
How do I download the School App?
The App can be downloaded to your Smart phone through the Apple App Store or Google
Play
How do I contact a specific teacher?
To contact a particular teacher, please ring the main office and leave a message. The
teacher will then contact you when s/he has an opportunity.
I need to contact my child during the school day. What should I do?
In this situation, parents are asked to contact the main office with the relevant details and we will pass the message to your child. This service must only be used for important
messages.
I need to take my child out of school for an urgent matter. What should I do?
In this situation, parents are asked, upon arriving at the school, to speak to the Principal / Deputy Principal.
Under no circumstances can a student leave the school without the prior knowledge of the Deputy Principal or the Principal.
How can I record absences ?
Any absence can be recoded on the app and students must also have a signed note in their journal.
How often is attendance monitored?
Attendance is monitored in every class and homes are contacted where necessary. The
school also has to file reports and communicate with the Educational Welfare Office.
Where a student under the age of 16 misses 20 days, or more, the school is legally obliged to send a report to The Child and Family Agency (TUSLA).
When do Parent/Teacher meetings take place?
There is one parent/teacher meeting per year group each year. The calendar, available on our website, lists the dates for each meeting. Parent/teacher meetings take place between 4.15 p.m. and 6.45 p.m.
Parents are welcome to arrange separate appointments with teachers throughout the year by telephoning the main office and leaving a message for the relevant teacher.
Does the school organise any other meetings for parents?
Yes, the school arranges a number of meetings throughout the year. The dates, times and
subjects of these meetings are put up on the School Calendar and reminders are also sent out on the App.
The Principal and Deputy Principals will be very happy to meet with parents on an
appointment basis to provide other information in relation to the school if so requested.
I would like to become more involved in the school. How can I join the Parents’ Council?
You are invited to contact Mr. Creedon should you require any further information on
becoming involved in the school as a parent.
How often do I receive school reports?
I cannot access VsWare. Who should I contact?
Parents are asked to guard their login details carefully. However, if you have any issues with VsWare, you are advised to phone the main office.
How do students keep their property safe?
Students are required to keep all personal property in their secure locker where available.
All personal property should be clearly marked with the owner’s name. Queries regarding lost property may be addressed to the main office.
Where can I find out more information on the school Uniform?
All information is available on the School Uniform page
Is the school responsible for transport to and from the school ?
The school bus system is managed by Bus Eireann unless the student is coming from Killarney and in that instance Kerry Coaches manage bus transport. Families manage other modes of transport.
Extra-Curricular Queries
My child is interested in taking part in extra-curricular activities. How can he / she go about this?
The school participates in many sporting and non-sporting activities throughout the year.
Students are asked to listen for announcements over the intercom and keep an eye on the relevant noticeboards for details of trials, meetings and competitions. The school app and Microsoft Teams are other sources of relevant information
School Policies and Anti-Bullying Procedures
Where can I find information about relevant school policies e.g. Code of Behaviour, Anti-Bullying Procedures, Relationships and Sexuality Education, Well-being, Admissions?
Policies are available on the School Policies webpage and also from the principal
I suspect my child is being bullied in school. What should I do?
The school takes cases of alleged bullying very seriously. If you suspect your child is being bullied, please encourage him / her to speak to a member of staff. Alternatively, you are asked to contact the relevant Year Head .
There is no such thing as an acceptable level of bullying. Prompt and appropriate action on behalf of both the home and the school is crucial in ensuring that such cases are kept to a minimum and do not escalate.
What supports are in place to help prevent bullying?
As a school, we have many procedures in place to help prevent bullying. Each junior class has a dedicated Class Tutor, a teacher with special responsibility for each class group. There is also a Year Head.
The school also has a dedicated Learning Support team and a Guidance Counsellor which plan activities to raise awareness of bullying. All students in the Junior school also study SPHE (Social, Personal, and Health Education) and well-being.
As well as in- house activities, ISK students participate in anti-bullying activities through outside agencies.
Child Protection
Where can I find information about the school’s Child Safeguarding Statement?
The Child Safeguarding Statement is available in the About section of this Website
Additionally, a copy of any policy is available on request from the Principal.
The school’s Designated Liaison Person (DLP) for child protection concerns is the Principal, Mr. O’ Dwyer. In his absence, the Deputy DLP is Mr O’Mahony(Deputy Principal).
Academic Matters
How much homework should my daughter be doing during the school week?
Homework is assigned regularly. Homework can take the form of written work and/or study.
The school considers homework an integral part of school life and expects all students to give their best efforts to their work.
As students differ so much in terms of their ability and speed of completion of work, it is impossible to be specific as to the amount of time to be spent on a daily basis on homework and revision by each individual student. However, the following general guidelines are offered:
| YEAR | HOURS PER SCHOOL DATE ON HOMEWORK AND REVISION |
| 1st | 1 – 1.5 hours |
| 2nd | 1.5 – 2 hours |
| 3rd | 2 to 3 hours |
| TY | Variable in accordance with amount of project work |
| 5th | 3 hours |
| 6th | 3 hours + |
My child will be absent from school for a few days, but does not want to miss schoolwork. What should he / she do?
If your child knows that he / she will be absent for a period of time, they should discuss this with their teachers prior to leaving.
My child is struggling with a particular subject. What should they do?
In the first instance, we encourage students to discuss any difficulties they are having with their subject teacher. If problems persist, parents are welcome to contact the school in order to speak to a particular teacher.
My child is interested in supervised study. How can I register her for it?
Supervised study is available to all students but understandable preference is given to
students in exam years. Interested students should contact Mr Stanton for further
information.
My child is in 3rd year and has to make subject choices for the following year. What support do they have in making this choice?
Before subject choices are finalised, the school holds a parent information evening on this topic.
All Third Year students sit the CAT 4 (Cambridge Assessment Tests) and this
assessment and applicability to subject choice is explained to them. The Guidance
Counsellor explains the process of selecting subjects to all 3rd year students. Students are welcome to seek the advice of their teachers if they are unsure as to what subjects to select.
Furthermore, parents/guardians are welcome to contact the school if they have any
particular enquiries around matters of subject choice.
