Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 19 Apr 1994

Vol. 441 No. 5

Written Answers. - Working Groups/Advisory Committees.

Helen Keogh

Question:

37 Ms Keogh asked the Minister for Education the number of working groups/advisory committees she has set up since she took office; the working groups/advisory committees, if any, that have reported; and if the recommendations of any such group have yet been implemented.

Minister for Education (Ms Bhreathnach)

Since I took office in January 1993, I have set up the following working groups or advisory committees involving persons from outside my Department:

—Expert Working Group on Bullying in Primary and Post-primary schools;

—Expert Advisory Group on Third-level Student Support;

—Senior Cycle Re-structuring External Monitoring Committee;

—In-career Development Advisory Committee — Primary;

—In-career Development Advisory Committee — Second-level.

Working groups or committees of this nature are a particularly useful mechanism for addressing complex inter-linking issues which are such a feature of the education system and for facilitating a practical input by the various partners in education.

These groups or committees tend to fall into a number of categories.

Some are traditional committees charged with addressing a particular task within a finite period in the course of which they clarify the issues, identify viable options and produce a report or findings which include recommendations for consideration by me as Minister. The Expert Working Groups on Bullying in Schools and the Expert Advisory Group on Third-Level Student Support were examples of this type.

This Expert Working Group on Bullying, which included educationalists and parents as well as officers of my Department, was established in April 1993. It presented me with its findings in June 1993 and I took action on the basis of its findings in September 1993.

I established the Expert Advisory Group on Third-level Student Support in March 1993. I received the report of the group recently and I subsequently announced a number of improvements approved by Government to improve the conditions and administration of the third-level student support schemes. I am continuing to study other significant findings in the report.

Other working groups or committees act as a mechanism for information exchange and for continuing consultation and feedback on a particular issue and provide a regular periodic input into the operation of my Department instead of working towards a specific report at the end of a finite period. The Senior Cycle Restructuring Monitoring Group and the In-career Development Advisory Committees are examples of such committees.

The setting up of informal working groups of officials only is a routine and continuing feature of the internal working arrangements of my Department.