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Special Educational Needs.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 15 June 2004

Tuesday, 15 June 2004

Questions (259, 260, 261)

Phil Hogan

Question:

310 Mr. Hogan asked the Minister for Education and Science when a resource teacher will be provided for a person, details supplied, in County Kilkenny; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17839/04]

View answer

Written answers

My Department has received an application for resource teaching support for the pupil referred to by the Deputy. The position is that applications for special educational resources, SER, received between 15 February and 31 August 2003, including the application in question, are being considered at present. In all, more than 5,000 such applications were received. Priority was given to cases involving children starting school last September and all these cases were responded to at or before the commencement of the current school year.

The balance of more than 4,000 applications has been reviewed by a dedicated team comprising members of my Department's inspectorate and the national educational psychological service, NEPS. These applications are being further considered in the context of the outcome of surveys of SER provision conducted over the past year and the data submitted by schools as part of a nationwide census of SER provision.

The processing of the applications is a complex and time consuming operation. However, my Department is endeavouring to have this completed as quickly as possible and my officials will then respond to all applicant schools. Pending a response, schools are advised to refer to circular 24-03, which issued in September 2003. This circular contains practical advice on how to achieve the most effective deployment of resources already allocated for special educational needs within the school.

In the case of teacher resources, the outcome for each applicant school will be based on a new weighted system of allocation which I announced recently. This system, as part of which an additional 350 teaching posts will be allocated, will involve two main elements, making a staffing allocation to schools based on a predicted incidence of pupils with special educational needs and making individual allocations in the case of children with more acute lower prevalence special educational needs.

It is expected that the change to a weighted system will bring with it a number of benefits. The new system will reduce the need for individualised educational psychological assessment, reduce the volume of applications to my Department for additional resources for individual pupils and give greater flexibility to schools, which will facilitate the development and implementation of improved systems and procedures in schools to meet the needs of pupils with low achievement and pupils with special educational needs.

Transitional arrangements for the introduction of the weighted system are being developed at present in consultation with representative interests. As soon as those consultations have been completed, the detailed arrangements for processing applications for resources, including those for special needs assistants and those received after 31 August last, will be set out in a circular to be issued to schools shortly.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

311 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Science when his Department will make a decision on an application for resource teaching support for a person, details supplied, in County Limerick; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17840/04]

View answer

My Department has received an application for resource teaching support for the pupil referred to by the Deputy. The position is that SER applications received between 15 February and 31 August 2003 are being considered at present. In all, more than 5,000 such applications were received. Priority was given to cases involving children starting school last September and all these cases were responded to at or before the commencement of the current school year.

The balance of more than 4,000 applications has been reviewed by a dedicated team comprising members of my Department's inspectorate and the National Educational Psychological Service, NEPS. These applications are being further considered in the context of the outcome of surveys of SER provision conducted over the past year and the data submitted by schools as part of a nationwide census of SER provision.

The processing of the applications is a complex and time consuming operation. However, my Department is endeavouring to have this completed as quickly as possible and my officials will then respond to all applicant schools. Pending a response, schools are advised to refer to circular 24-03, which issued in September 2003. This circular contains practical advice on how to achieve the most effective deployment of resources already allocated for special educational needs within the school.

In the case of teacher resources, the outcome for each applicant school will be based on a new weighted system of allocation which I announced recently. This system, as part of which an additional 350 teaching posts will be allocated, will involve two main elements making a staffing allocation to schools based on a predicted incidence of pupils with special educational needs and making individual allocations in the case of children with more acute lower prevalence special educational needs.

It is expected that the change to a weighted system will bring with it a number of benefits. The new system will reduce the need for individualised educational psychological assessment reduce the volume of applications to my Department for additional resources for individual pupils and give greater flexibility to schools, which will facilitate the development and implementation of improved systems and procedures in schools to meet the needs of pupils with low achievement and pupils with special educational needs.

Transitional arrangements for the introduction of the weighted system are being developed at present in consultation with representative interests. As soon as those consultations have been completed, the detailed arrangements for processing applications for resources, and those received after 31 August last, including the application for the pupil in question, will be set out in a circular to be issued to schools shortly.

Brian O'Shea

Question:

312 Mr. O’Shea asked the Minister for Education and Science if a special needs assistant who has been assigned to a person who moves on to another school can automatically transfer to the school to which the person has transferred and continue as a special needs assistant to that person; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17867/04]

View answer

Responsibility for the recruitment and appointment of special needs assistants, SNAs, rests with the relevant school authorities. The criteria for the appointment of SNAs is outlined in Department circular SNA 03-03, Appointment Procedures for Special Needs Assistants. The circular may also be accessed on my Department's website, www.education.ie.

The management of the school to which a pupil transfers must secure my Department's approval to recruit an SNA. In the event that such approval is given, it is a matter for that school to appoint a suitable person to the post.

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