Vol. 475 No. 6
124 Mrs. O'Rourke asked the Minister for Education if a request for a remedial teacher has been made to her from a school (details supplied) in County Westmeath; if her attention has been drawn to the fact that this school has specific needs which call for the appointment of a remedial teacher; the plans, if any, she has to make such a provision for this school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5562/97]
I am aware of the case made by the school in question for a remedial teacher service. Remedial teacher posts are allocated to schools on the basis of priority of need as determined by my Department following the collection and analysis of data from schools by my Department's Inspectorate. The allocation of such posts is also subject to resource availability in any given year. I am not in a position at present to allocate additional remedial teachers to primary schools.
Since my appointment as Minister for Education, I have allocated an additional 241 remedial teachers to the primary sector. A total of 1,188 remedial teachers are now in place and the percentage of pupils who have access to a remedial service has increased from 77 per cent to 87 per cent.
However, as Minister for Education, I have to consider how best to deploy available resources across a wider range of special needs. I have to determine priorities and try to allocate resources to best effect.
In the current school year, I have adopted a particular focus on children who suffer from educational disadvantage and have sought to target resources into this area in an effort to break the cycle of disadvantage. As part of this approach, I recently launched a major new initiative aimed at bringing special targeted assistance to children in selected urban and rural areas who suffer serious educational disadvantage. I am satisfied that since my appointment as Minister for Education I have achieved substantial advances across the entire spectrum of special needs, including the remedial area. It is my intention to continue this process. When I am next in a position to extend the remediation service, the needs of the school in question will receive every consideration.
