Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 25 March 2014
394. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide an update in tabular form of the commitments in the programme for Government that relate to his Department; and the progress that has been made in the implementation of each commitment. [14112/14]
View answerThe timeline for delivery of the Programme for Government commitments is over the lifetime of this Government. To date, the Government has published three annual progress reports, the most recent of which was published earlier this month and which sets out the progress over the last 12 months of an extensive number of commitments (relevant extracts attached).
With regard to the commitments relating to my Department, the annual report sets out in detail progress made on issues such as:- Empowering schools to improve standards- Protecting front-line services in education- Enactment of legislation establishing the Education and Training Boards and SOLAS, the Further Education and Training Authority- Implementing the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategy- Investing in the School Building Programme- Delivering Equity in Education- Supporting Children with Special Needs- Promoting inclusiveness in primary schools- Reforming the Irish curriculum in schools- Reforming Third Level Education.
I would also refer the Deputy to my statement to the Dáil on the 5th of March where I set out the progress made in the Education Sector since the present Government took office in 2011 and outlined my priorities for 2014.
Programme for Government: 2014 Annual Report
Extracts relating to Commitments relevant to the Department of Education and Skills
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Commitment |
Relevant Extract in 2014 Annual Report |
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- We will provide a range of initiatives to increase access to further higher level education for the unemployed. |
To-date over 40,800 additional training and education places have been provided exceeding the 30,000 target set out in the Programme for Government: |
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- Within this total, we will provide 30,000 additional training places across the education and training system, distributed in line with the recommendations of the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs. |
- 5,800 places on the FÁS Specific Skills Training programme- More than 15,000 places have been provided under the three rounds of the Springboard programme that have issued to date. |
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- We will expand training options for jobseekers across the VEC, further and higher education sectors to facilitate upskilling of the labour force. |
- 1,500 places have been provided for jobseekers under two rounds of the ICT graduate skills conversion programmes since 2012.- 9,000 places on the Back to Education Initiative 2011-2013- 3,000 Post Leaving Certificate places 2011-2013- 6,500 Momentum places (Labour Market Education and Training Fund) |
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- A National Strategy for International Education will be implemented, to develop the ‘Education Ireland’ brand, to encourage more international students to study here and to create new jobs in the sector. |
A public consultation was launched last year as part of a review of Ireland’s International Education Strategy which targets the six priority markets of USA, China, India, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Malaysia along with new scholarship opportunities in emerging markets. This will form the basis for a new Government Action Plan for International Education highlighting measures to be taken over the period 2014-2016 to enhance our educational relationships with priority and emerging markets and enhance the economic return to Ireland in an increasingly competitive global marketplace. |
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- Our objective will be to double the number of international students studying in Ireland, particularly targeting students from India, China and the Middle East. |
- Ministerial-led Education missions took place in Brazil, China and the Gulf in 2013 to deepen education links and attract more students from new and growing countries. As part of the Ministerial mission to China, 13 agreements between Irish and Chinese education institutions were signed and the Minister officially opened the Beijing-Dublin International College, a joint venture of UCD and Beijing University of Technology. - Already 5,000 Chinese students and 1,200 Brazilian students attend Irish higher education institutes and the number of 3rd level Indian students studying in Ireland is set to double by 2015. |
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- This policy will be pursued in line with employment, academic and skill requirements of overall economy and education sector. |
Interactions with the Education in Ireland brand through its website and the various social media channels supported was over 856,000 in 2013, up from around 30,000 this time last year. |
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- Undertake a full review of the Hunt and OECD reports into third level funding before end of 2011. |
At present in Ireland there are 39 higher education institutions in receipt of over €1 billion State funding, serving around 170,000 students. Following a yearlong process of research, analysis and engagement, the Higher Education Authority (HEA) made a series of recommendations on system re-configuration in Irish higher education and implementation of these reforms is underway. |
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- We will introduce radical reform in third level institutions to maximise existing funding, in particular reform of academic contracts and will encourage greater specialisation by educational institutions. |
The HEA has been asked to establish regional clusters of institutions in three identified regions, involving all seven universities and 14 Institutes. Each of these will now develop regional plans, eliminating unnecessary duplication of provision and establishing clear pathways of transfer and progression for students in the region. |
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A new system performance framework is being put in place during 2014 by the HEA which will assess system performance against the national priorities, system objectives and key indicators published in 2013. |
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- We will initiate a time-limited audit of level 8 qualifications on offer and learning outcomes for graduates of these courses. |
The ‘Supporting a Better Transition from Second Level to Higher Education’ report, published in 2013, committed to significantly reduce the number of level 8 degree programmes in higher education and make them more broadly-based. Following publication, a consultation process and further detailed research was undertaken including a major conference held in NUI Maynooth in June involving key stakeholders. A framework for implementation will be agreed during 2014. |
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- We will explore the establishment of a multi campus Technical University in the South East. |
In May, the HEA was instructed to implement recommendations arising from their report on Irish Higher Education relating to the proposed consolidation of three groups of Institutes of Technology to progress towards attaining Technological University status: - The Dublin Institute of Technology, IT Tallaght and IT Blanchardstown - Cork IT and IT Tralee - Waterford IT and Carlow IT |
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A fourth group, the Connacht-Ulster Alliance (Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology; Sligo IT and Letterkenny IT) have indicated that they are deepening their existing alliance with a view to merging in the medium term. |
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The general scheme of a Technological Universities Bill has been published which will allow for the future establishment of Technological Universities and the mergers of institutes of technology. |
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- We will require schools, with the support of the Inspectorate, to draw up five year development plans for their schools and individual teachers. |
External inspections of schools by the Inspectorate have become more frequent, with half of all primary schools inspected in the period 2010-12 and 93% of post-primary schools inspected in 2011 and 2012. As part of the new School Self Evaluation Model, each year all schools are required to self-evaluate one aspect of teaching and learning, to prepare a report on this and to provide a summary report to the school community. They are also required to prepare a school improvement plan outlining the targets and actions they will take over a three-year period to improve |
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- The system for evaluating schools will be reformed so parents have access to more information when choosing a school for their family. A new system of self-evaluation will be introduced, requiring all schools to evaluate their own performance year on year and publish information across a wide range of criteria. |
They are also required to prepare a school improvement plan outlining the targets and actions they will take over a three-year period to improve practice in this aspect of teaching and learning. Schools are required to provide the first summary SSE report and School Improvement Plan no later than the end of the 2013/14 school year. |
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- We will give greater freedom and autonomy to school principals and boards to raise educational standards by devolving more responsibility locally, with greater freedom to allocate and manage staff with required flexibility and to delegate management responsibilities to teachers as school priorities require. |
Ensuring more responsibility and accountability at school level is a core part of reforms in relation to curriculum & assessment, teacher performance and the literacy and numeracy strategy. Curriculum reforms, like junior cycle reform, will require schools to take ownership for curriculum and assessment issues. A key objective of the new of School Self Evaluation model, introduced in 2012, is to make schools responsible and accountable for their educational outcomes and this will involve schools producing school improvement plans and annual reports on the self- evaluation process by the end of the school year 2014. |
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- A priority in education will be to recruit, train and support the highest calibre of teachers. School leadership will be fundamental to furthering this aim. |
Considerable progress is being made towards the proposed 6 new centres for education with the HEA in discussions with the institutions concerned and funding in place to help with the costs involved in the transitions. From January 2014, teachers employed in State-funded teaching positions in schools must be registered with the Teaching Council in order to be paid from State funds. This paves the way for the implementation relating to the Council’s investigative and disciplinary functions and to undertake inquiries into the professional conduct of teachers. |
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- Education will be a priority for this Government. It will endeavour to protect and enhance the educational experience of children, young people and students. To that end, it will endeavour to protect front-line services in education, and seek efficiencies in work and school practices, in line with the Croke Park Agreement. |
Budget 2014 provided for an additional 1,400 teachers to be recruited in primary and post-primary schools in 2014. The projected saving in the education sector under the pay and productivity measures contained in the Haddington Road Agreement is €600 million over its lifetime, including: - 43 hours of supervision and substitution duties per teacher per annum without payment • Third-level academic staff will work 78 additional hours each per annum - The working week of administrative grades has been increased and standardised. |
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- We will review Junior and Leaving Certificate systems and implement reforms necessary to encourage greater innovation and independent learning, building on the NCCA’s work in this area. |
Implementation of the new reformed Junior Cycle, renamed the Junior Cycle Student Award (JCSA), commences in September 2014 with a new English syllabus to be followed by a new Science curriculum in September 2015 and other subjects incrementally until full reform is achieved in 2022. €4.8 million is being provided in 2014 to allow up to 7,000 school personnel, including principals and teachers of English, to receive training for the reformed Junior Cycle. |
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- Maths and science teaching at second level will be reformed, including making science a compulsory Junior Cert subject by 2014. Professional development for maths and science teachers will be prioritised. |
The second intake of Maths teachers for the Professional Diploma in Mathematics for Teaching saw a further 300 teachers admitted to the programme in September. A dedicated programme of in-school, online and workshop supports for Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths teachers continued in 2013. |
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- A bonus points system for maths, which is linked to specific maths or science courses, will be introduced to encourage greater participation in courses where skills shortages currently exist. |
Schools involved in the pilot Project Maths initiative sat exams at Junior and Leaving Certificate in all strands of the new programme in 2013. Students in all other mainstream schools sat exams with a Project Maths component for the first time. Participation at higher level in Science at Junior Cycle was up to 79% from 76% in 2012 with overall participation in Science at Junior Cycle at 90.1%. 52% of Junior Certificate students opted to take higher level maths paper compared to 48% in 2012. In 2013, 26% (13,014) of all Leaving Certificate Mathematics students took the Higher Level paper – the highest figure on record. |
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A national literacy strategy for children and young people will be developed as a matter of urgency, with school-level targets that are related to national targets. Every school will be required to have a literacy action plan, with demonstrable outcomes. Responsibility for achieving these outcomes will be vested in the school principals, who will also receive continuous professional development to support the implementation of the strategy. |
Progress during 2013 on the implementation of the Literacy and Numeracy Strategy included: - Provision of relevant workshops to Teachers on Comprehension, Oral Language, Guided Reading, English as an Additional Language, Infant Maths and Problem Solving; - Reconfigured and extended post-graduate programmes for both primary and post-primary teachers to commence in September 2014; - Collation of school based standardised testing on literacy and numeracy; - ‘The Family Project’ developed in partnership with NALA was screened on TV and showcased the educational tools and techniques that are available to all families; - All new preschool leaders to have a minimum of full award at Level 6 from September and existing preschool leaders by 2015 which includes a mandatory literacy and numeracy module. |
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Pre-service and in-service training in teaching of literacy for all primary and secondary school teachers will be improved, with dedicated literacy mentors to work intensively with teachers in most disadvantaged primary schools. |
There are now 40 primary and 14 post-primary literacy and numeracy advisors within the Professional Development Service for Teachers. The Strategy requires all schools to set specific targets for the promotion and improvement of literacy and numeracy. To date over 71,000 training places have been made available to all teachers, both primary and post primary, who are leading the roll out of support for the strategy. Over the course of the 10 year strategy, teachers will be charged with accessing 20 hours of Continuous Professional Development and sufficient provision will be made for them to access same. |
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DEIS primary schools will be required to teach literacy for 120 minutes per day; non-DEIS schools to teach literacy for 90 minutes per day. This time includes incorporating structured literacy tuition into teaching of other subjects. |
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A longer term aim of this Government will be to position Ireland in the top ten performing countries in the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). |
The latest OECD PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) results demonstrate significantly improved performance by Ireland since 2009, when compared to the 34 OECD countries. Ireland’s 15 year olds are ranked 4th for reading – up 13 places, 9th for science – up 5 places and 13th for maths – up 13 places. International comparisons at primary level are also positive: Ireland’s fourth class pupils are ranked 10th out of 45 countries in the PIRLS reading test and 17th out of 50 countries in the TIMSS mathematics test. |
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- A new plan to develop ICT in teaching, learning and assessment will be developed. This plan will incorporate the integration of ICT policy across other agencies, such as the Professional Development Services for Teachers, the State Examinations Commission, and Project Maths. |
A public consultation was launched in December with parents, teachers, students, industry and academics asked for their views on how best to make use of computers and technology in the classroom. This follows a comprehensive online survey of principals and teachers earlier in 2013 on the use of ICT in teaching and learning in primary and post primary schools, all of which will feed into a new Digital Strategy for Schools in 2014. |
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- The primary priority for investment in ICT in the immediate term will be the integration of ICT in teaching and learning across the curriculum and investing in broadband development to ensure schools have access to fibre-powered broadband. Investment in ICT will be maximised through pooling of ICT procurement. |
In 2013, contracts were awarded under the high speed network for a further 234 second-level schools in the counties of Dublin, Kildare and Meath which will bring the total to 516 schools connected when complete. The final stage will see the remaining 269 schools in the south connected during 2014. |
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- Greater use of online platforms will be made to offer a wide range of subjects and lessons online, and to enable schools to ‘share’ teachers via live web casts. These online lessons will be made available through a new Digital School Resource, bringing together existing resources from National Council for Curriculum Assessment, Department of Education and other sources as a cost effective means of sharing expertise between schools. |
Following a tender process in 2013, the Department’s portal website, Scoilnet.ie, was redeveloped and migrated to a platform that will support the inclusion and sharing of learning objects. The new website will collate all relevant resources produced by the Department’s skills support services in recent years, and make them available in the repository under open licences for teachers to adapt and reuse as they see fit. Other public sector bodies and Departments with educational content will be encouraged to make it available within the repository under open licences. Rollout is commencing early in 2014. |
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- The objective of this Government will be to progressively phase out the inefficient renting of school prefabs. In the interim the negotiation of prefab rental contracts will be part of a reformed public procurement policy to encourage greater value for money, transparency and reduce dependency on temporary accommodation. |
Capital investment in schools continued in 2013 with a total of 44 major school projects completed, comprising 29 primary and 15 post-primary schools, providing a total of 13,767 permanent school places and enhanced facilities for almost 8,000 pupils. A further 3,220 schools at primary level benefited from the 2013 €28 million once-off Minor Works Grant scheme. - 70 school building projects were announced for 2014 as part of the €2 billion five-year capital investment programme 2012 - 2016 which will deliver over 27,500 permanent school places. €470 million will be spent on primary/post primary infrastructure next year and projected expenditure of €290 million on large scale projects. - A second phase of the Prefab Replacement Initiative was announced in 2013 with an allocation of €15 million. This will allow 46 schools to replace their prefabs with 119 mainstream classrooms and 37 resource rooms. |
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- The Department of Education’s central database of school accommodation will be overhauled to ensure a complete inventory of school buildings and associated structures is maintained so deficiencies are easily identifiable |
Following the completion of a pilot study in Tuam, Navan, Clonmel, Portlaoise, and part of Limerick City, to develop an inventory of education infrastructure and related community assets, a project team has been appointed to progress the development of inventory data for the rest of the country. |
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- In areas of demographic growth, Shared Educational Campuses will be the preferred model for future development of educational infrastructure. New schools will be built to grow with their communities and to provide for more interactive, child-friendly model of education. |
As part of the five-year capital programme there are a number of Shared Education Campuses being delivered in areas of demographic growth. Campuses have recently been completed in Dublin, Monaghan and Portlaoise, with delivery of the first phase of permanent accommodation also completed on campuses in Navan, Greystones and Luttrellstown. |
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- We will consider recommendations of the review of the DEIS programme and use it as a platform for new initiatives to deliver better outcomes for students in disadvantaged areas. |
The latest findings by the Educational Research Centre on longitudinal testing of reading and mathematics over the period 2007-2013 has found that test scores in urban DEIS primary schools at all grade levels have increased significantly. Gains are particularly evident in the junior grades and in schools that have high levels of disadvantage. Levels of pupil absence have also fallen from 10.8% in 2007 to 7.1% in 2013. Evaluation of the DEIS will continue during 2014 with further ERC reports expected. |
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- We will examine how to make existing expenditure on educational disadvantage more effective, and innovative ways in which teenagers at risk of leaving school system can stay connected, for example through use of ICT-based distance learning and projects such as iScoil. |
The latest Report on Retention Rates in Post Primary Schools show the Leaving Certificate retention rate in DEIS schools increased by almost 7 percentage points from 73.2% to 80.1%. It also shows that in 2011 the proportion of early school leavers in Ireland was 10.6%, down from 13% in 2004 and ahead of the EU average of 14%. |
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- We will support diversity in education of children with special needs, recognising that both intensive education and mainstreaming can be seen to work for individual children. |
- An additional 390 Special Needs Assistant (SNA) posts were approved by Government in 2013 bringing the total number of SNAs available for children with an assessed need in primary and post primary schools to almost 11,000. There are also now over 10,700 additional teachers in schools supporting children with special educational and learning support needs, up 695 since 2012 and more than at any time previously. - In 2013, the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) developed comprehensive policy advice on supporting children with special educational need in schools. The report showed that in 2012/2013 there were 31,202 pupils in mainstream education in receipt of NCSE allocated resource teaching, 3,678 pupils attending special classes attached to mainstream schools and a further 7,094 pupils attending special schools. - The report recommends revising the current approach to allocating additional special educational teaching supports to schools to ensure the system is equitable and based on need. At the request of the Minister the NCSE has established a Working Group to develop a proposal for a new allocation model for teaching supports based on the profiled needs of children in schools, which is expected to report in Spring 2014. |
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- We recognise the critical importance of early diagnosis of autism and early intervention and address current deficits in this area. |
The National Disability Implementation Plan 2013-2015 provides a framework for driving the delivery of real and meaningful improvements in the lives of people with disabilities. The National Disability Authority has been asked to examine how the actions already contained in the Plan can be tailored to the needs of people with autism and how any issues arising can be addressed within that framework. The consultation with stakeholders begins in early 2014. In addition the NCSE has been asked to prepare policy advice on educational provision for children with autism. |
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- We will reverse the cut to the number of psychologists in National Educational Psychological Service in Budget 2011. |
There are currently 168 (WTE) educational psychologists employed within National Educational Psychological Service, an increase of 9 since 2010. |
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- We will encourage schools to develop anti-bullying policies and in particular, strategies to combat homophobic bullying to support students. |
An Action Plan on Bullying was launched in January 2013 to help prevent and tackle bullying in primary and second level schools. The following actions were delivered in 2013: - New anti-bullying procedures launched and being implemented by all 4,000 primary and post-primary schools - 105 parent anti-bullying sessions delivered to 3,279 participants - A phased programme of continuing professional development, developed to support teachers in schools in relation to the Action Plan and the Anti-Bullying Procedures - Work began on updating guidelines for school staff and boards of management in relation to homophobic bullying |
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- We will undertake a thorough reform of the Irish curriculum and the way in which Irish is taught at primary and second levels of education. We will reform the curriculum so more emphasis is put on oral and aural skills. We will allocate 50% of marks to the oral Irish exam at Leaving Certificate level. |
Work is underway by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) to inform the development of the new curriculum for Irish at Junior Cycle for implementation in September 2016. A public consultation process has recently concluded on a background paper by the NCCA on the issues that the new junior cycle specification should address. The NCCA will be engaging with stakeholders in 2014 on a new Primary Language Curriculum – for Junior Infant to Second Classes where languages are taught partly in relation to one another. |
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- We will aim to double the proportion of Irish students sitting the Higher Level Leaving Certificate exam by 2018. |
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- We will take steps to improve the quality and effectiveness of the teaching of Irish at second level. When these steps have been implemented, we will consider the question of whether Irish should be optional at Leaving Certificate. |
The number of students sitting Higher Level Irish in the Leaving Cert has increased year on year with 14,358 in 2011, to 15,937 in 2012 and 16,669 in 2013. A review by the NCCA of students’ experiences of the new assessment arrangements of the 40% allocation to the oral assessment is due to report soon. With a further 10% allocated to the aural exam, it means that 50% of marks are now allocated for language skills |
