Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 27 June 2012
4. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Education and Skills the total cut to resource hours last year and for this year; the impact that this will have on children with special and educational needs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31184/12]
View answerI wish to clarify for the Deputy that there is no overall reduction in resource teaching numbers for the coming school year.
Overall, 9,950 posts will be provided for resource teaching and learning support for this coming academic year. That is the same number as that provided for last year and is an increase of 350 over that provided for in 2010.
Some 5,500 of these posts are available to the NCSE for allocation for pupils with more complex special educational needs.
Due to an increase in demand in schools it has been necessary for the NCSE to make an allocation of 85% of approved resource teaching hours to each school to ensure that every child who needs support can access support and are treated the same. This will ensure that there are a sufficient number of posts retained to make allocations for late or emergency applications, while staying within the European-imposed employment control framework.
I thank the Minister for his reply. Since the late 1990s huge advances have been made in putting in place a strong system of support for pupils with special educational needs. We must continue to support young people with special needs in our schools and protect the most vulnerable.
As the Minister stated, those with more complex needs have better resources provided for them, as is necessary.
The Minister said 9,950 posts will be provided for the school year 2012-13 and that this is similar to what was provided for in the 2011-12 school year. Were all of those posts allocated in the 2011-12 school year or is that information available to the Minister? I understood from the Minister's response that 9,950 posts were provided for, but were they all taken up or offered?
I do not believe they were, but I will arrange for that information to be communicated to the Deputy.
I acknowledge the wisdom and prudence in retaining 15% for allocation as the year progresses. I remember a question raised here previously with regard to special needs allocations and a substantial number of positions had still not been allocated as we approached the end of the school year. Does the Minister have a pattern for how the 15% is allocated over the year? Is it possible to allocate more of those posts earlier in the year? If the evidence from last year shows it is and if that is the pattern emerging, we should be more adventurous in upping the allocation above 85%.
I agree with the Deputy. With regard to SNAs, last year was the first time we held back a 10% quota for emergency cases and late applications. This year we announced on the same day, both the SNA allocation and the resource and special teaching support systems. The practice and the experience from last year is informing us and it is probable we will be able to release more posts in the first round allocations than previously. We did not want a situation to arise whereby we would have no reserves left to fill a bona fide application and the person would be left without an allocation. I am informed by the director general of the NCSE that the incidence of special need, vis-à-vis either SNAs or resource teachers, is levelling off. Therefore, we can do the job effectively with the numbers we have.
I thank the Minister for that clarification. The start of the school year is always an anxious time for parents with regard to the provision being made for children with special needs. We are aware of those concerns from what happened prior to the start of the school year last August. I suggest that if sufficient prudence was exercised so as to allow for a larger allocation of posts to be made initially, that would ease and alleviate some of the fears of parents.
That is what we will try to do. With regard to the reduction in the allocation in terms of time and the breakdown of the minutes, a schedule of how the hour should be allocated was drawn up in 1993 and is now being revisited to see if it is an appropriate allocation of different kinds of subvention and support systems for people with learning difficulties. Last year, the reduction of 10% accounted for six minutes from one hour and this year there is a further 5% reduction. Therefore, the 15% amounts to nine minutes. We have sent guidelines to the schools suggesting how, through different ways of teaching, such as grouping some learners with difficulties together, we can maintain the same kind of productivity, notwithstanding the notional and nominal 15% reduction in the time allocation.
