Vol. 519 No. 5
361 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Education and Science if he will give details of the most recent survey of laboratory facilities for science subjects at second level, classifying schools according to the availability of the equipment and distinguishing availability in (i) boys as against girls schools and (ii) in public schools as against voluntary secondary schools. [14472/00]
An analysis of the science survey revealed a high degree of consistency among responding schools in relation to the level of science equipment available or required by schools. Accordingly, it is felt that rather than engage in protracted scrutiny of the survey results in terms of school management structures and gender breakdown of schools, it is more prudent to respond to the overall trends emerging.
In this regard, in excess of 75% of schools that responded to the survey indicated that a computer was not available to the laboratory while 95% of schools indicated that a computer was not used for experimental data acquisition-analysis. These figures demonstrated that there existed a substantial need among all schools to fund the acquisition of computer equipment for use in laboratories. I have already provided funding to schools to address this situation.
362 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Education and Science the total payments to date of science grants to second level schools for (i) the additional per capita grant (ii) the capital grant and (iii) the grant for a PC for science labs; and the projected spending for the coming three years under the physical science initiative. [14473/00]
Earlier this year, a grant of £2,500 for the purchase of computer equipment was issued to schools that offer any one of the physical science subjects at leaving certificate level. A general science equipment grant of £1,500 was also paid simultaneously to qualifying schools for acquiring items of equipment for use in the laboratory. In total, £2,464,000 was expended under this grant.
Decisions concerning the spending of the balance of £13 million, which was targeted under the science initiative for expending on science facilities over a three years period, have not been finalised. A special grant for the teaching of physics and chemistry of £10 per capita in respect of pupils studying the leaving certificate subjects physics, chemistry and physics and chemistry has also been paid and amounted to £300,000.
Annually, grants are paid from the second level capital allocation for the provision of new science laboratories and the refurbishment of existing science laboratories in second level schools. Since an investment in the science infrastructure of a school generally forms part of an overall project at a school, the level of capital expenditure incurred by my Department specifically on science facilities is not analysed separately.
