Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 13 November 2013
69. Deputy Tom Barry asked the Minister for Education and Skills his views on whether it would be fairer to assess individual students rather than entire school catchment areas when determining disadvantage. [48456/13]
View answerThe majority of schools include among their pupils children with disadvantaged backgrounds, and in general schools address the individual needs of these children without recourse to additional targeted resources. Research carried out by the Educational Research Centre (ERC) for the Educational Disadvantage Committee found strong evidence for the proposition that the disadvantage associated with poverty and social exclusion assumes a multiplier effect when large numbers of pupils in a school are from a similar disadvantaged background (the "social context effect").
It is this principle that underpins the approach taken under DEIS "Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools" the Action Plan for Educational Inclusion which focuses on addressing the educational needs of children and young people from the most disadvantaged communities. Schools were identified for inclusion in DEIS by virtue of their identified level of disadvantage which was based on the concentration of disadvantaged pupils enrolled in individual schools. In the current economic climate the focus of my Department is to retain where possible key resources in those schools targeted under the DEIS programme supporting children most at risk of educational disadvantage.
