Written Answers Nos. 74 - 81
74. Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor asked the Minister for Education and Skills if consideration and preparations have been made for architectural technology courses which will be impacted by the New Building Control (Amendment) Regulation; if this regulation will not include architectural technologist in the schedule of those eligible to certify and will potentially reduce the benefit and job prospects of such a course qualification. [3113/14]
View answerUniversities and institutes of technology are autonomous institutions with responsibility for their own academic affairs. My Department has no role in relation to the development or amendment of programmes or in relation to recognition of particular qualifications.
75. Deputy Joanna Tuffy asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide a list of all LTI providers in the country together with addresses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3121/14]
View answerThe Local Training Initiative is funded and co-ordinated by SOLAS. I have asked an official in SOLAS to provide the information directly to the Deputy.
76. Deputy Joanna Tuffy asked the Minister for Education and Skills the statistical information (details supplied) that is available to him regarding social inclusion in schools; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3178/14]
View answerMy Department does not collect information in the format requested.
77. Deputy Colm Keaveney asked the Minister for Education and Skills if, for the purposes of allocation of special needs resources, he will examine the case for adding Down syndrome to the list of complex, low incidence disorders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2352/14]
View answer78. Deputy Colm Keaveney asked the Minister for Education and Skills the measures he will take to improve the educational experience of children with Down syndrome; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2353/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 77 and 78 together.
I wish to advise the Deputy that pupils with Down Syndrome attending mainstream schools may receive additional teaching support in primary schools, either under the terms of the General Allocation Model (GAM) of teaching supports, if the pupil's educational psychological assessment places the pupil in the mild general learning disability/high incidence disability category, or through an allocation of individual additional resource teaching hours which are allocated by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), if the child is assessed as being within the low incidence category of special need, as defined by my Department's Circular Sp Ed 02/05.
Pupils with Down Syndrome may therefore be allocated resources under the category of mild general learning disability, or under the categories of moderate general learning difficulty or Assessed Syndrome, in conjunction with another Low Incidence disability.
Regardless of the manner in which the resource hours are allocated to schools, resource teaching/learning support is available for all pupils with Down syndrome.
The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has a formal role under the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act, 2004 in advising me in relation to any matter relating to the education of children and others with disabilities.
My Department requested that the NCSE consider the issue of whether Down Syndrome should be reclassified as a low incidence disability in all instances, regardless of assessed cognitive ability, in the context of its preparation of comprehensive advice on how the educational system supports children with special educational needs in schools.
The NCSE report on Supporting Children with Special Educational Needs in Schools has now been published and is available on the NCSE website www.ncse.ie. The report recommends that under the new resource allocation model proposed by the NCSE in its report, children should be allocated additional resources in line with their level of need, rather than by disability category.
The NCSE has recommended that in the short-term, pupils with Down Syndrome who are in the Mild General Learning Disability (Mild GLD) category should continue to be supported by schools' Learning Support allocation in the same way as other pupils with a Mild GLD.
The NCSE policy advice did not recommend that an exception should be made for children with Down Syndrome who are in the Mild GLD range, over other children who are in the mild range and who also may have other co-morbid conditions. However, the NCSE report states that it is confident that the introduction of a new allocation model will overcome the difficulty posed by all children with mild general learning disabilities, including children with Down Syndrome, who have additional difficulties and who can be supported according to their level of need and in line with their learning plan process. In the meantime, schools are reminded that they can differentiate the level of learning support granted to ensure that available resources are used to support children in line with their needs.
The NCSE has established a Working Group to develop a proposal for consideration for a new Tailored Allocation Model, which is set out as one of the principal recommendations of the report. I understand that the Working Group will report its findings before the end of Spring 2014.
79. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for Education and Skills the total amount of outsourcing that has been achieved in his Department since the letter sent by Secretary General of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in March 2012; the names of the outsourcing companies that have been involved; the total savings achieved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3299/14]
View answerThe work of my Department and of the wider Education and Training sector already includes the use of a diverse range of outsourcing arrangements relating to such areas as the school building programme, education and training courses at various levels, services provided for teachers and special needs assistants and a range of corporate functions for education providers such as ICT support, payroll, HR, waste management, cleaning and security. For instance, in 2012, the Momentum initiative was announced following a two-stage application process for providers, where value for money as well as quality formed part of the evaluation process. This initiative is providing 6,500 training places which are offered by both public and private providers. In June 2013, following a competitive process a new round of Springboard was announced which includes 6,000 places on 200 courses in 38 Institutes of Technology, Universities and privately-run higher education colleges.
Arising from a Government Decision in July 2012, Departments are required, when evaluating any proposed new service, to include an appraisal of the costs and benefits of delivering the service using external providers. While, to date, no proposal for a new Department service has been considered under this provision, my Department is addressing the issue of external service delivery in the context of other initiatives underway across the Education sector, such as the use of aggregated procurement and the assessment of potential shared services projects. The Department has also identified a number of functions for further consideration as to their suitability for external service delivery and these will be assessed in the coming months.
80. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of new agencies and State bodies established since 9 March 2011 under the remit of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3345/14]
View answerFor the Deputy's information under the Public Service Reform plan the following were identified for rationalisation or merger and since March 2011 the following actions have taken place.
The Irish Research Council for Science, Engineering and Technology and Irish Research Council for Humanities and Social Sciences were merged in March 2012 to form the Irish Research Council (IRC). The IRC has been established as a sub-board of the Higher Education Authority (HEA).
Under the provisions of the Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) Act 2012, the National Qualifications Authority of Ireland (NQAI), the Higher Education Training Awards Council (HETAC) and the Further Education Training Awards Council (FETAC) were amalgamated to form a new agency, the Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) on the 6th November, 2012. Under the provisions of the Education and Training Boards Act 2013 the Vocational Education Committee (VEC) system was reconfigured, with the number of further education bodies being reduced from 33 to 16.
In addition, under the provisions of the Further Education and Training Act 2013 FÁS was dissolved in October 2013, with a new training authority, An tSeirbhís Oideachais Leanúnaigh agus Scileanna (SOLAS) being created with responsibility for funding, planning and co-ordinating training and further education programmes. Following the enactment of the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Act 2012, the Education Finance Board was dissolved and in March 2013 and establish the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Board (CaraNua). This body will be funded from the contributions of the religious congregations offered in response to the request for additional contributions, following the publication of the Ryan Report.
81. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of semi-State companies under the remit of his Department that have paid bonuses to its employees in 2011, 2012 and 2013; if he will identify these semi-State companies; the number of employees and the level of bonuses paid; his views on the situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3696/14]
View answerThere are no semi State companies under the remit of my Department.
In respect of non-commercial state agencies under the remit of my Department (list follows) I can confirm that no bonuses have been paid to any employee for the years 2011, 2012 or 2013.
List of state agencies under the aegis of the Department of Education and Skills as at November, 2013
|
Agency |
Website |
|
An Chomhairle um Oideachais Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaíochta (COGG) |
http://www.cogg.ie |
|
An tSeirbhís Oideachais Leanúnaigh agus Scileanna (SOLAS) |
http://www.solas.ie |
|
Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (CICA) |
http://www.childabusecommission.ie/ |
|
Grangegorman Development Agency |
http://www.ggda.ie |
|
Higher Education Authority (HEA) |
http://www.hea.ie |
|
Irish Research Council |
http://www.ircset.ie/ |
|
Léargas - The Exchange Bureau |
http://www.leargas.ie |
|
National Centre for Guidance in Education (NCGE) |
http://www.ncge.ie |
|
National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) |
http://www.ncca.ie |
|
National Council for Special Education (NCSE) |
http://www.ncse.ie |
|
Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) |
http://www.qqi.ie |
|
Residential Institution Redress Board (RIRB) |
http://www.rirb.ie |
|
Residential Institution Review Committee (RIRC) |
|
|
Residential Institutions Statutory Fund (RISF) |
|
|
Skillnets Ltd |
http://www.skillnets.ie |
|
State Examinations Commission (SEC) |
http://www.examinations.ie |
|
The Teaching Council |
http://www.teachingcouncil.ie |
