Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 28 October 2004
351 Ms Cooper-Flynn asked the Minister for Education and Science her views on the fact that two schools with the exact pupil number, with completely different special needs children with higher incidence special education needs should get the same allocation of resource teachers; and the way in which this can ensure that resources go were they area actually needed. [26558/04]
View answer352 Ms Cooper-Flynn asked the Minister for Education and Science her views on the fact that the new weighting system for special needs resources discriminates against small schools and leaves them with less resource hours than they enjoyed previously under the old system; her further views that this new system could result in the closure or amalgamation of same small schools. [26559/04]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 351 and 352 together.
I am conscious of difficulties that could arise with the proposed mechanism for allocating resource teachers to primary schools, particularly for children in small and rural schools, if it were implemented as currently proposed. Accordingly, I will be reviewing the proposed model to ensure that it provides an automatic response for pupils with common mild learning disabilities without the need for cumbersome individual applications, while at the same time ensuring that pupils currently in receipt of service continue to receive the level of service appropriate to their needs. The review will involve consultation with educational interests and the National Council for Special Education before it is implemented next year.
