Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 17 October 2012
105. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the DEIS has considered increasing the minimum number of teaching hours for lecturers employed in third level institutions from 16 to 18 and the projected savings that could be made to the third level budget from this change. [44975/12]
View answer108. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the DEIS examined the benefits of introducing a third semester for third level institutions that would increase the teaching cycle from 24 weeks to 36 weeks a year and his further views that this would provide a much better training cycle for students and a possible 50% productivity increase with four-year degrees being completed in less than three years. [44978/12]
View answer109. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if consideration will be given to introducing a more robust and transparent system of performance evaluation for third level lecturers that focuses on evidence of changes made in teaching practice and the establishment of specific teaching standards to be reached. [44979/12]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 105, 108 and 109 together.
Individual higher education institutions have autonomous responsibility for the management of staff resources. While teaching hours norms are specified under standard agreed contracts for academic staff in the institute of technology sector, in the case of the university sector there would be a variation of individual teaching loads as part of overall academic duties. Under the terms of the Public Service Agreement (Croke Park), revised contract terms have been agreed for university academics which provide for an additional hour per week to facilitate teaching and learning in universities. To date this has resulted in the delivery of in excess of 100,000 lecturing hours annually. Based on the most conservative figures for hourly pay rates, the total cost if those extra hours were paid for would be €8 million annually. A number of key provisions of the academic contract have also been addressed which, among other things, deal with improving and strengthening performance management. All universities have confirmed that these revised contractual terms now apply to all academic staff members.
In the Institute of Technology sector, flexibility in the organisation of working hours means that lecturing staff are available to deliver an additional two hours lecturing per week. To date this has resulted in the delivery of in excess of 150,000 lecturing hours annually. Based on the most conservative figures for hourly pay rates, the total cost if these extra hours had to be paid for would be €13.25 million annually.
These arrangements, which have been fully implemented in both sectors since the start of the 2011/12 academic year, allow universities and IOTs to cope with the reduction in staff numbers while dealing with an increase in the student population. My Department is continuing to work with the higher education sector to ensure further efficiency gains within the context of public sector reform initiatives and the Public Service Agreement.
