Written Answers. - Special Educational Needs.
Bernard J. Durkan
Question:
93
Mr. Durkan
asked the
Minister for Education and Science
the proposals, if any, he has to extend the availability of remedial or special needs teachers to all primary and secondary level schools; the timetable in this regard, with particular reference to special needs arising in main stream education; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
[7184/00]
In November 1998 a major initiative for integrated education for children with special needs was launched. This initiative provided the first ever automatic supports for many children with disabilities. The measures involved are aimed at ensuring that all children with a special educational need, irrespective of their location or disability, will receive the support they require to participate fully in the education system.
The measures extend right across the entire spectrum of special needs and deliver extra teaching and child care services to special needs children, whether in groups or in individual isolated settings. The key measures in the initiative included the introduction of a formalised system of special teaching support for all children attending school on a fully integrated basis who have been assessed as having special educational needs and the introduction of a formalised system of child care support for all children with special needs, including those in special schools, special classes and ordinary schools, who have been assessed as requiring such support.
The level of response in each case has regard to the number of children and the severity of the disabilities involved. Where a group of special needs children attend an ordinary school or adjacent schools, the support may take the form of full-time resource or child care posts or both. Where individual or small groups of children are involved, the support may take the form of part-time teaching hours or part-time child care support or both. The level of support has regard to the number of children and their particular assessed needs.
Already, as a result of this development, my Department has allocated an additional 225 resource teachers and 642 special needs assistants to support children with special needs in the primary system.
Since September 1999 the remedial service has been extended to all primary schools with a pupil teacher ratio of 10:1 or above. Schools with lower pupil teacher ratios may also seek remedial support from my Department where the level of their particular need warrants such a service.
The Deputy will be aware that it was announced some months ago that, with effect from the beginning of the current school year, all second level schools in the free education scheme have an entitlement to an ex-quota allocation in respect of remedial education.
The actual entitlement of an individual school for a particular school year is determined by the enrolment at the end of the preceding September. Schools with an enrolment of 600 or more pupils qualify for the allocation of a full post while schools with enrolments below 600 qualify for the allocation of 0.5 of a post.
The total allocation to second level schools in respect of remedial teaching in the current school year is of the order of 560 wholetime teacher equivalents.
I assure the Deputy of my commitment to ensuring that children with special needs will receive the support they require to fully participate in the educational system and reach their potential.
