Written Answers. - Traveller Education.
Seán Crowe
Question:
196
Mr. Crowe
asked the
Minister for Education and Science
if he will report on the progress of his Department's evaluation of Traveller education at primary and secondary level referred to in his response to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 220, 221, 227 and 228 of 17 December 2002.
[23863/03]
Seán Crowe
Question:
197
Mr. Crowe
asked the
Minister for Education and Science
if he will report on the work of the high level official promised under PPF to take a lead role in co-ordinating the facilitation of Traveller participation in education.
[23864/03]
Seán Crowe
Question:
198
Mr. Crowe
asked the
Minister for Education and Science
if an assessment will be carried out of the literacy attainment levels of Traveller children.
[23865/03]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 196 to 198, inclusive, together.
The principal officer of the social inclusion unit was appointed as the high level official to co-ordinate my Department's response to the educational needs of Travellers in February 2003, in accordance with the recommendation under the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness. The remit of the social inclusion unit now encompasses the co-ordination of all Traveller education provision within my Department and includes policy, co-ordination and development in relation to Traveller education. A more efficient and co-ordinated service in Traveller education is expected and a range of issues will be progressed in conjunction with the continued work of the Advisory Committee on Traveller Education.
My Department is committed to the development of a five year Traveller education strategy, including an evaluation of existing initiatives in this area. Work has commenced in developing a framework for the strategy and it is expected that the scope and organisational structure for the strategy exercise will be agreed shortly. An external expert has been appointed to lead the process and he will work closely with a joint working group drawn from both the Advisory Committee on Traveller Education, ACTE, and the Educational Disadvantage Committee, EDC.
The main focus of the Traveller education strategy exercise will be to review-evaluate existing activities, the wide range of inputs, the quality of outcomes and the experience of Traveller learners within the education system, to make recommendations on the future development of the service and recommend a phased implementation plan. Clear objectives will be set and it is envisaged that any baseline data required to support implementation of the strategy will be identified and the required arrangements to benchmark performance against this baseline data during the five year implementation period will be outlined.
The Department's inspectorate intends to evaluate the provision made for education of Travellers in both primary and post-primary schools, with priority being given to the primary evaluation initially. It is hoped that the planning and consultation stage for this evaluation will be completed before the end of 2003 and that the evaluation work will commence in 2004 and be linked with the overall Traveller education strategy exercise.
Under the national anti-poverty strategy, NAPS, in relation to child literacy, my Department is committed to halving the proportion of pupils with serious literacy difficulties by 2006. Child literacy is also a key focus of the new partnership agreement, Sustaining Progress, which includes a special initiative to tackle educational disadvantage.
In order to ensure progress is made towards the NAPS target, my Department undertook the first fully representative survey of reading literacy in disadvantaged schools, which was conducted this year in order to establish much needed baseline data on current reading standards in such schools. This survey will be followed in 2004 by a national assessment of reading in first and fifth classes.
Literacy levels among Travellers will also be among the issues examined as part of the Traveller education strategy exercise.
Question No. 199 answered with Question No. 195.
