asked the Minister for Education the proposals which she has to introduce a comprehensive educational psychological services in schools, particularly at primary level, bearing in mind the greatly inadequate service persently operating, only at post-primary level.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Educational Psychology Service.
27.
I hope that it will be possible shortly to take the measures outlined in paragraph 4.4 of the Programme for Action in Education which states:
A number of the interests consulted raised the question of the adequacy of the assessment services and, in particular, voiced the need for improved continuing contact between such services and the teachers and pupils in special schools and classes. It is proposed to enter into discussions with the Department of Health with a view to strengthening such service. It is also intended to explore the extent to which an input can be made by psychologists employed by the Department of Education.
Until such time as these discussions have been completed and the resources become available it will not be possible to introduce such a new service.
I do not accept the allegation that the existing provision in post-primary schools is greatly inadequate. I am satisfied that in the context of the resources of personnel and finance available for the purpose, the best possible service is being provided.
Bearing in mind the Minister's statement of her much flaunted commitment to the disadvantaged and of the many plaudits that she had received, would she agree that the non-provision of such psychological services, particularly an integrated educational psychological service, is affecting most the disadvantaged group in our society, those young people who suffer from educational, social and various kinds of disadvantage? Bearing in mind this huge social need, would she not accept the need for discussions to continue endlessly? The Minister has now been three years in office and, given her stated commitment, her performance is falling very much short of the ideals of her Minister of Education. Her own leader said recently that in Ireland the rich are favoured by education. Would she agree with that, especially with regard to the lack of a psychological service as outlined by the Taoiseach?
I would not agree with most of what the Deputy has said. I shall take up some of the points which she has made. The Action Programme for 1984 to 1987 contained a range of commitments, a great many of which have been undertaken. It was a four year programme and items were identified for action each year. This is one of the items identified for the later years of the programme. I would draw the attention of the Deputy to the fact, as I have said earlier, that this is the first Government ever to tackle the question of specific disadvantage at primary level in a very imaginative way, with a generous special fund.
That is making an untruth out of it, which is terrible.
We shall be making every effort to continue that fund, to attack precisely the problem which has been allowed to develop over very many years.
The Deputy has accused the Minister of telling an untruth.
Me?
No, Deputy. I am referring to Deputy Fitzgerald. He should withdraw that.
If that is how it was interpreted, then I withdraw the statement. The Minister is misleading the House.
I should like to continue by saying that, in the past two years in order to attack the problem which the Deputy mentioned, as referred to by the Taoiseach in his recent speech, of the paucity of entry from certain social classes to third level education, we have been approaching the question of primary disadvantage in a special way, never done before by any Government. Apart from the funds which we have given in the primary sector to help to relieve the difficulties of running a school, with special in-service training courses and extra equipment, we also have created some 92 new posts for disadvantaged areas in the past two years. This has reduced dramatically the pupil-teacher ratio in those schools and, as well as having smaller classes, enabled schools to foster home-school links. As well as the disadvantaged fund in general, we have created 62 extra remedial posts over the past two years, arriving at the present highest ever total of 827 posts providing a service for 1,100 schools.