Our system of education has changed dramatically over the last couple of centuries.
In the late 18th and 19th Centuries we have records of ‘Hedge Schools’. These ‘Hedge Schools’ were so called because they were usually located under hedges and ditches. The curriculum in these schools was based on the three R’s, including History, Geography, Book-keeping and Mathematics. In the second half of the 18th Century with the increase in population and the decline of Penal Laws, there was an increase in the number of ‘Hedge Schools’ throughout the country. In 1824 there were 7,600 independent ‘Pay Schools’ under Lay Catholic teachers. The majority of these ‘Hedge Schools’ (a title that they still have even though they were now held in huts and cabins) were very often made of mud. Of these, there were seventeen in Killenaule Parish.
– The History & Folklore of Killenaule/Moyglass 1990
Today there are only three remaining primary schools in the parish of Killenaule/Moyglass and they are: St. Marys Central National School, Killenaule. Moyglass National School, Moyglass and Ballinure National School, Ballinure.
More Information of these can be found here.
Historic Schools