Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 October 2018
259. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Skills the actions taken to reconsider the need for a second year in Professional Masters of Education, PME, programmes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43288/18]
View answerChanges to the duration and content of all initial teacher education programmes were made in response to recommendations in the National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011-2020 and were incorporated into the Teaching Council’s Policy Paper on the Continuum of Teacher Education and Criteria and Guidelines for Programme Providers. Both were published in 2011.
Improvements which were made to initial teacher education courses include the reconfiguration of the content and duration of courses, with the duration of concurrent (undergraduate) ITE programmes set at a minimum of four years while the consecutive (postgraduate) programmes of teacher education are set at two years, thereby facilitating an innovative reconceptualisation of programmes.
The lengthened and reconfigured programmes include substantial periods of school placement as central to student teacher development and a number of mandatory elements including literacy and numeracy, teaching, learning and assessment including school and classroom planning, differentiation, behaviour management, inclusive education (special education, multiculturalism, disadvantage, etc) and ICT in teaching and learning. These reforms are focused on improving the quality of teaching in our schools, which is central to the educational outcomes of our children.
The Teaching Council is currently undertaking a review of the impact of the reconfigured ITE programmes and of the Criteria and Guidelines for accreditation, which will feed into an update of the procedures and criteria documentation.
The Deputy may wish to note that, recognising the concerns that have been raised around teacher supply in recent times, a new Teacher Supply Steering Group was convened by Minister Bruton in March 2018. The Steering Group is leading on the identification of the issues, the development of a programme of actions on teacher supply and overseeing its implementation. In undertaking its task, the Steering Group is cognisant of the requirement that all persons wishing to teach in recognised schools must meet the professional registration standards and criteria set by the Teaching Council, which is the professional regulatory body for the teaching profession.
