Written Answers Nos. 415-436
415. Deputy Chris Andrews asked the Minister for Education the school planning areas in Dublin city; the student population in each planning area; the schools in each area by population, staff levels and ratios in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9542/21]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, for school planning purposes my Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas. The school planning areas in Dublin City are as follows:
- Cabra_Phibsboro_D7
- Drumcondra_Marino_Dublin1
- Dublin_8
- Dublin2_Dublin4
- Dublin6_Clonskeagh
- Dublin_6W
- Rathfarnham
- Booterstown_Blackrock
- Dolphin’s Barn_D12
- Ballyfermot_D10
- Killester_Raheny_Clontarf
- Donaghmede_Howth_D13
- Darndale_D17
- Beaumont_CoolockD5
- Whitehall_SantryD9
- FinglasEast_BallymunD11
- Scribblestown_FinglasWest
For clarity, this list reflects school planning areas which are fully or partly within the Dublin City Council administrative area.
Data on schools across the country is available on my Department’s website, www.education.ie under the “Find a School” function. Schools can be searched for using a number of different criteria including, inter alia, School Level, Geographical Area and Ethos and key information on the relevant schools, including enrolments from the 2019/20 academic year, is displayed in the results. A map of the relevant schools is provided as part of the "Find a School" functionality.
Full lists of all schools at primary or post primary level can also be downloaded from my Department's website and these provide further data on individual schools. These lists can be filtered by local authority and/or county which may be helpful.
In respect of school staffing, the criteria used for the allocation of teaching posts is published annually on the Department website. The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources (teachers) provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the previous 30 September. The staffing schedule operates in a clear and transparent manner and treats all similar types of schools equally, irrespective of location. For the current school year (2020/21), it operates on a general average of 26 pupils to every 1 teacher (26:1) which is historically the lowest ever allocation ratio at primary level. In DEIS schools, the staffing schedule operates at a more preferential allocation ratio.
For the upcoming school year (2021/22) at primary level the staffing schedule will operate on a general average of 25 pupil to every 1 teacher (25:1).The staffing schedule for the 2021/22 school year will be published in the coming weeks. It is at this stage that schools will be able to establish their staffing for the coming September and the redeployment process to fill teaching vacancies will begin.
Teachers are currently allocated to post primary schools at a ratio of 19:1 in the free education system and 23:1 to schools in the fee charging sector.
416. Deputy Chris Andrews asked the Minister for Education if there are plans for additional primary or secondary schools in each of the planning areas across Dublin city; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9543/21]
View answerIn order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, my Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas and uses a Geographical Information System, utilising data from a range of sources including information on planned and current residential development, to identify where the pressure for school places across the country will arise. My Department then makes an assessment of the existing capacity within the particular area and its ability to meet increased demand.
Where data indicates that additional provision is required at primary or post primary level, the delivery of such additional provision is dependent on the particular circumstances of each case and may be provided through either one, or a combination of, the following:
- Utilising existing unused capacity within a school or schools,
- Extending the capacity of a school or schools,
- Provision of a new school or schools.
Since 2011, four new post primary schools and eleven new primary schools have been established for demographic purposes to serve school planning areas which are partly or fully within the Dublin City Council administrative area. An additional two new primary schools have been established in Dublin City school planning areas under the patronage divesting process.
In addition to those new schools which have already been established, the below schools have also been announced to serve school planning areas in Dublin City:
- A new Gaelscoil to serve the Donaghmede_Howth_D13 school planning area to be established in 2021
- A new Gaelscoil to serve the Dublin2_Dublin4 school planning area to be established in 2021
- A new post primary school to serve Booterstown_Blackrock and Dún Laoghaire school planning areas to be established in 2021
- A new post primary school to serve Drumcondra_Marino_Dublin1 school planning area to be established in 2022
The requirement for additional school places is kept under on-going review and work on an updated exercise to assess needs for the coming years is at an advanced stage.
417. Deputy Chris Andrews asked the Minister for Education the number of students with additional needs or special education needs across Dublin city school planning areas; the status of the provision of additional needs and special education schools or classes across these areas; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9544/21]
View answerEnabling children with special educational needs to receive an education appropriate to their needs is a priority for this Government. The total education spend will be approximately €2 Billion or over 20% of its total educational budget in 2021 on making additional provision for children with special educational needs this year.
The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has responsibility for coordinating and advising on the education provision for children nationwide. It has well established structures in place for engaging with schools and parents. NCSE seeks to ensure that schools in an area can, between them, cater for all children who have been identified as needing special education placements.
NCSE is planning a further expansion of special class and special school places nationally, to meet identified need. This process is ongoing.
It is open to any school to make an application to the NCSE for the establishment of a specialised provision and where sanctioned, a range of supports, including capital funding, is made available to the school.
Notwithstanding the extent of this investment, there are some parts of the country where increases in population and other issues have led to concerns regarding a shortage of school places.
Through better planning at both national and local level, it is my objective that specialist education places should come on stream to meet emerging demand on a timely basis. However, the active collaboration of school communities is essential in this regard.
Most children with special educational needs are enrolled and supported in mainstream classes and data is not collected on the numbers. The thrust of Department policy in recent times is to allocate special education teachers based on an education profile of the school so a diagnosis of need is not required in respect of children accessing this support. In relation to the Dublin City school planning area referenced by the Deputy, I am advised by the NCSE that there are currently 8 special schools and 53 special classes providing special education placements for 469 students at primary and post primary level.
Through ongoing consultation at local level the NCSE is aware of those parents whose children will be seeking placement for the 2021/22 academic year, including mainstream placement with appropriate support, special class placement, Early Intervention and special school placement. The NCSE continues to work at local level to identify any and all relevant suitable placements.
Special classes in the Dublin area generally operate at capacity, and the NCSE is working with a significant number of schools in the county to encourage and support the opening of new ASD classes at all levels.
I can also reassure the Deputy that the local SENOs continue to be available to assist and advise parents of children with special educational needs.
Further information on special schools, special classes and contact details for SENOs is available at www.ncse.ie.
418. Deputy Chris Andrews asked the Minister for Education the number of primary and secondary schools across areas in south-east Dublin; the staff to student ratios and levels of each by patronage in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9545/21]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, data on schools across the country is available on my Department’s website, www.education.ie under the “Find a School” function. Schools can be searched for using a number of different criteria including, inter alia, School Level, Geographical Area and Ethos and key information on the relevant schools, including enrolments from the 2019/20 academic year, is displayed in the results. A map of the relevant schools is provided as part of the "Find a School" functionality.
Full lists of all schools at primary or post primary level can also be downloaded from my Department's website and these provide further data on individual schools. These lists can be filtered by local authority and/or county which may be helpful.
In respect of staffing at schools, the criteria used for the allocation of teaching posts is published annually on the Department website. The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources (teachers) provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the previous 30 September. The staffing schedule operates in a clear and transparent manner and treats all similar types of schools equally, irrespective of location. For the current school year (2020/21), it operates on a general average of 26 pupils to every 1 teacher (26:1) which is historically the lowest ever allocation ratio at primary level. In DEIS schools, the staffing schedule operates at a more preferential allocation ratio.
For the upcoming school year (2021/22) at primary level the staffing schedule will operate on a general average of 25 pupil to every 1 teacher (25:1).The staffing schedule for the 2021/22 school year will be published in the coming weeks. It is at this stage that schools will be able to establish their staffing for the coming September and the redeployment process to fill teaching vacancies will begin.
Teachers are currently allocated to post primary schools at a ratio of 19:1 in the free education system and 23:1 to schools in the fee charging sector.
419. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Education the names and contact details for each special adviser requested for appointment by her in tabular form. [9593/21]
View answerIn accordance with the terms of the guidelines for Ministerial Appointment for the 33rd Dáil Ms. Áine Doyle and Mr. Eoin Murphy have been formally appointed by Government as Special Advisers at my Department.
Mr. Michael Ward has been formally appointed as a Special Adviser to assist my colleague, Ms. Josepha Madigan T.D. Minister of State. The following tabular statement contains the information requested by the Deputy.
|
NAME |
GRADE |
CONTACT ADDRESS |
|
Ms. Áine Doyle |
Special Adviser |
Minister’s Office, Department of Education, Marlborough Street, Dublin 1. Tele: 01 8896400 |
|
Mr. Eoin Murphy |
Special Adviser |
Minister’s Office, Department of Education, Marlborough Street, Dublin 1. Tele: 01 8896400 |
|
Mr. Michael Ward |
Special Adviser, Minister of State |
Minister of State’s Office, Department of Education, Marlborough Street, Dublin 1. Tele: 01 8896400 |
421. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Education the estimated cost of fully implementing section 13 of the 2006 National Council for Special Education Implementation Report: Plan for the Phased Implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9613/21]
View answer422. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Education the estimated cost of fully implementing sections 10 and 17 of the 2006 National Council for Special Education Implementation Report: Plan for the Phased Implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9614/21]
View answer423. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Education the estimated cost of fully implementing section 14 of the 2006 National Council for Special Education Implementation Report: Plan for the Phased Implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9615/21]
View answer424. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Education the estimated cost of fully implementing section 8 of the 2006 National Council for Special Education Implementation Report: Plan for the Phased Implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9616/21]
View answer425. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Education the estimated cost of fully implementing section 39 of the 2006 National Council for Special Education Implementation Report: Plan for the Phased Implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9617/21]
View answer426. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Education the estimated cost of fully implementing sections 3, 7, 9 and 18 of the 2006 National Council for Special Education Implementation Report: Plan for the Phased Implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9618/21]
View answer427. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Education the estimated cost of fully implementing sections 11, 12, 15, 16 and 38 of the 2006 National Council for Special Education Implementation Report: Plan for the Phased Implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9619/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 421 to 427, inclusive, together.
I wish to advise the Deputy that a number of sections of the Education for Persons with Special Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004 have been commenced. The commenced provisions include those establishing the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) and those providing for an inclusive approach to the education of children with special educational needs.
The following sections of the EPSEN Act were commenced in 2005.
Section 1 – Interpretation
Section 2 - providing for the inclusive education of children with Special Educational Needs
Section 14 – placing certain duties on schools
Sections 19 to 37 - placing the Council on a statutory footing.
Section 39 - placing certain duties on Health Boards
Sections 40 to 53 - amending the Education Act
Schedule 1 – providing for meetings and membership of the Council
Schedule 2 providing for the Chief Executive Officer of the Council.
The remaining sections of the Act have yet to be commenced. The Sections of the EPSEN Act which have not been implemented are those which would have conferred a statutory entitlement to –
- an educational assessment for all children with special educational needs.
- consequent development of a statutory individual educational plan (IEP).
- the delivery of detailed educational services on foot of this plan.
- an independent appeals process.
The NCSE estimated, in its Plan for the Implementation of the EPSEN Act Report, which was published in 2006, that additional investment over a period of years of up to €235m per annum, across the education and health sectors, would be required to fully implement the EPSEN Act.
The view of my Department, at the time, was that the level of investment required could be significantly greater than that envisaged in the NCSE report. Legal advice also indicated that the EPSEN Act, as it is currently constituted, may not be implemented on a phased, or age cohort, basis.
Revised estimates of the amount of additional expenditure required to fully implement the remaining sections of the EPSEN Act, including the individual sections of the Act referred to by the Deputy, have not recently been conducted. The estimated level of additional expenditure required, to implement the outstanding sections of the Act, would have to take into account annual demographic growth and service developments in the area of special educational needs, pricing adjustments and salary cost differentials on an ongoing basis. Estimates would also have to be made as to the number of pupils who may now currently qualify for the statutory service provisions envisaged by the EPSEN Act.
The Government is committed to helping every child, particularly those with special educational needs, to fulfil their potential.
In 2021 the Department of Education and Skills will invest approximately €2 Billion in the area of special educational needs support - 1/5 of the Department's budget and up over 42% since 2011.
The Government has committed to consulting with stakeholders on how best to progress aspects of the EPSEN Act on a non-statutory basis.
A range of consultations with Education Partners and Stakeholders took place in relation to the development of a new model for allocating special education teachers over the course of 2017. The new model was introduced for all schools from September 2017.
Further consultations took place with education partners and stakeholders in the context of the undertaking of a comprehensive review of the SNA scheme and will continue in relation to the implementation of recommendations contained in this report.
Additional powers have also been provided to the National Council for Special Educational to designate a school place for a person with special educational needs, which is now provided for in the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018.
While awaiting the full implementation of the EPSEN Act, the NCSE has also published a number of policy advice papers which make recommendations aimed at developing a better or more effective alternative to the current resource allocation model, and which aims to move the system towards ultimate implementation of the EPSEN Act.
It should also be noted, however, that since EPSEN was enacted, the Department’s policy on supporting children with special educational needs has changed and evolved on foot of evidence based policy advice from the NCSE which takes account of international perspectives.
Significantly, the focus of special needs education provision has changed from a model that is diagnosis led to one which is driven by the needs of the child. This is a substantially different view to the one underlying the EPSEN Act. The levels of investment by Government in special education has increased to facilitate the underlying reforms required to implement and embed the needs based approach.
This Government will continue to prioritise investment in the area of special education support. Ongoing investment and reform will continue to see improvements made in this area.
I have also indicated that one of my priorities as Minister for Special Education and Inclusion is:
Updating our Laws: Reviewing and updating the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act.
Any review of the Act will take into account the extent of additional investment which has been made in special educational services since 2004, with some €2 Billion per year now being spent of special educational supports.
It will also take into account the range of reforms which have taken place in recent years including the development of new allocation models which are not based primarily on a response to assessment as policy advice has indicated that requirement of diagnosis can create a risk of children being diagnosed as having a special educational need for resource allocation purposes, rather than for health reasons. Also, that as there is a spectrum of ability and disability within every special education disability category, account must be taken of need, as well as diagnosis.
428. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Education the amount spent by her Department on legal costs arising from litigation involving children with special educational needs since the passing of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9620/21]
View answerIt should be noted by the Deputy that my Department does not initiate such proceedings and cases are generally only litigated where no potential settlement is acceptable to both sides and the Government's authority to decide issues of education policy is in question. My Department does not take lightly any decision to defend cases concerning children with special educational needs. Therefore, my Department is not complacent in dealing with these cases and attempts, wherever possible, to reduce the potential for litigation and the levels of legal costs that arise.
Legal costs incurred by the State in defending proceedings instigated against the Department, are not met directly by the Department. In accordance with financial procedures in cases involving damages or compensation against the State, costs are generally charged to the Chief State Solicitor's Office Vote as sanctioned by the Attorney General. The Department may be required to meet the legal costs of Applicants/Plaintiffs where there is a settlement or an order for costs against the State in cases where my Department is a named party.
Please see Table below which details any such Legal Cost contributions to Applicants/Plaintiffs for the years 2010 to 2020, which are readily available to my Department.
It should be noted by the Deputy that in some years my Department also received reimbursements of legal costs from various parties, including contributions towards such costs from State co-defendants, involved in the litigation process. These reimbursements have been taken account of in the figures provided, as applicable.
|
YEAR |
Total expenditure for SEN Litigation Legal Costs |
|
2010 |
€649,239.75 |
|
2011 |
€622,159.30 |
|
2012 |
€172,665.85 |
|
2013 |
€69,888.86 |
|
2014 |
€115,929.90 |
|
2015 |
€117,465.00 |
|
2016 |
Nil |
|
2017 |
Nil |
|
2018 |
€69,147.50 |
|
2019 |
€19,875.00 |
|
2020 |
€172,084.51 |
430. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Education if schools can be afforded autonomy in circumstances in which they are willing to do so to provide the 20-hour supplementary programme in the school setting during school hours for children with additional needs attending mainstream classes. [9639/21]
View answerMy Department is conscious of the fact that closing schools has hugely adverse consequences at individual, family and societal level and that the effect on children with special educational needs can be even greater. I am particularly conscious of the impact that school closures have on children with special needs.
I am particularity conscious of the impact school closures have on children with special educational needs.
Building on the return to school in recent weeks of children in special schools and in special classes at primary and post-primary level, the Government has decided on a phased return of students to in-school education.
These further phases have been developed in close collaboration with education stakeholders and follow ongoing engagement with the Department of Health and Public Health, HSE.
The Department of Health and the HSE have reaffirmed that schools in themselves are low risk environments and that a gradual phased reopening can occur at this time. Public health has reviewed the measures put in place to ensure safe operation of schools and is satisfied that these infection prevention and control measures, if rigorously adhered to, will keep the school community safe during this period. They emphasise that all measures must be followed carefully by students, staff and parents.
There will be a period of time between each phase to assess the impact of reopening on aspects of community transmission.
The phased return of students to in-school education and the associated target dates are as follows
- Monday 1 March - the first four class groups at primary level – junior and senior infants, first and second class – and final year Leaving Certificate students will return to in-school provision. This phase will also see a return to full attendance for children in special schools, as well as children in early start pre-school classes and early intervention special classes for children with autism or hearing impairment.
- Monday 15 March - the return to in-school provision of the rest of primary school children – third to sixth class, and fifth year Leaving Certificate students. This date will be reviewed during the period following 1 March.
- Monday 12 April - the return to in-school education of the rest of post-primary students following the Easter – i.e. first to fourth year students.
My Department is anxious to further support those pupils/students with SEN who are unable to return to in-school teaching and learning under these phases.
At Primary level in recognition that not all students with special education needs will be back in school in this phase
- Schools have been asked to prioritise deployment of their SET resources to facilitate the engagement of those pupils with SEN who are in 3rd to 6th class. This will necessitate further collaboration between the SETs and class teachers to establish current priority learning needs among those pupils.
- The supplementary programme for eligible pupils who are in 3rd to 6th class will be extended by a further two weeks
At Post Primary level in recognition that not students with special education needs will be back in school in this phase
- The supplementary programme for eligible students who have not yet returned to school will be extended by a further two weeks.
The supplementary programme is intended to supplement the teaching and learning provided by the student’s school and alleviate the impact of this period of school closure through the provision of 5 hours per week in-person teaching or care support to be delivered in homes.
The programme must be delivered outside of the normal school day (i.e. evenings and weekends), so that the student can continue to engage as fully as possible with the teaching and learning provided by their school.
Any unused hours can be delivered to families at any time before 30 April 2021, including during the Easter holidays.
My Department has been contacted by schools and families who wish to access the supplementary programme in school settings. My Department is willing to engage with the education stakeholders, particularly the school management bodies on the logistical issues which may need to be considered in the running of this programme in school premises, particularly as this programme is intended to happen outside of school hours such as evenings and weekends.
I know that a phased re-opening is particularly challenging for many children with special educational needs who have not yet returned to school and their families.
The purpose of managing this cautious phased return is to continue to limit the mobility of the population and curb the spread of the virus.
The safe return and sustained safe re-opening of our schools is a key priority for Government.
431. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Education when students who left school after completing the school-based junior cycle assessment in 2020 will receive their State certificate of completion of the junior cycle from her Department; and if no student who left school after this junior cycle programme will be disadvantaged in taking up apprenticeships due to the fact that they have not yet received this certificate. [9641/21]
View answerMy predecessor as Minister for Education and Skills announced revised arrangements for the Junior Cycle 2020 on 29 April last.
Under the revised arrangements and in light of the exceptional circumstances presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, schools were asked as soon as possible after the end of the 2019/20 school year, to furnish students with a written school report on their learning achievements in each subject, short course and/or priority learning unit as appropriate.
The work and achievement of students who were in third year of Junior Cycle in the academic year 2019/20 would also be recognised with a State Certificate of Completion from the Department of Education.
Work is ongoing in the development of this certificate and my Department will contact schools shortly to verify the Junior Cycle data held regarding the subjects, short courses and priority learning units being taken by students, as appropriate. This data will inform the production of the State Certificate of Completion, which will issue in the weeks following the data verification period.
My Department is aware of some former Junior Cycle 2020 students who are seeking to commence apprenticeships. Following consultation with SOLAS, as an interim measure, for eligibility purposes and pending issue of the State Certificate of Completion, my Department is providing on request a letter of confirmation to those who are due to receive the State Certificate of Completion.
In order for the letter of confirmation to be prepared individuals or their parents/guardians are being advised to get in touch with my Department to provide permission for contact to be made with the student’s school in order to obtain the relevant information .
All students who have responded to my department has been provided with a letter of confirmation.
It should be noted that the above interim measure only applies to individuals who were due to sit the Junior Cycle examinations in 2020.
432. Deputy Joe O'Brien asked the Minister for Education the status of efforts to secure a permanent site for a school (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9647/21]
View answerThank you for your correspondence in relation to Malahide Portmarnock Educate Together National School
I was very happy to meet with representatives of Malahide Portmarnock ETNS on 2 December, to advise them on the status of the acquisition of the permanent site for the school.
As advised at the meeting, a site had been identified for the permanent location of the school and conveyancing commenced. However, this was delayed due to title issues. These have since been resolved and acquisition of this site is at an advanced stage of conveyancing, but not yet closed.
In the intervening period other options for the permanent location for the school presented themselves. These options are currently being assessed in order to ensure the educational requirements for the area are best served.
The options being considered for the permanent location of the Malahide Portmarnock ETNS are within the school planning areas the school was established to serve, of Portmarnock and Malahide.
I am unable to comment any further on the particular circumstances relating to them, due to commercial sensitivities.
433. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Education if the surpluses from the school transport contract between her Department and Bus Éireann were entered into the audited profit and loss account of Bus Éireann in 2008, 2011 and 2014; and if Bus Éireann directors signed off on this action. [9652/21]
View answerSchool Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 113,100 children, including over 14,500 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €224.7m in 2020.
The 1975 Summary of Accounting Arrangements form the basis of the payment to Bus Éireann for the operation of the School Transport Scheme. In this regard, my Department reimburses Bus Éireann for a range of costs incurred in the operation and administration of the scheme. Reimbursement to Bus Éireann is on a cost recovery basis and the Department does not pay any profit to Bus Éireann relating to the School Transport Scheme.
Actual expenditure is finalised in the Bus Éireann annual statement of account which is independently audited by the Bus Éireann auditors in accordance with the 1975 Summary of Accounting Arrangements.
434. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Education the number of staff employed in her Department by gender and by Civil Service salary scale in tabular form. [9658/21]
View answerThe requested information is set out in the attached table.
435. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Education the current number of live studies, reviews and research undertaken or commissioned by her; and the date by which each study, review and research is scheduled to be completed in tabular form. [9680/21]
View answerSince my appointment the live studies, reviews and research in progress, undertaken or commissioned by my Department of Education is set out in the table below.
The timeframe for completion of some of this work may change in line with any necessary logistical adjustments arising from Covid-19 related impacts.
The Deputy will also be aware that I intend to have a Review of the Calculated Grades Scheme 2020 undertaken as soon as is practicable.
|
Title of current study/ review/research undertaken or commissioned |
Scheduled End Date |
|
Spending Review 2021: Forecasting Teacher Retirements |
July 2021 |
|
Independent Evaluation of the Gaeltacht E-Hub Pilot Project |
February 2021 |
|
Research and Evaluation, School Excellence Fund-Creative Clusters Initiative |
September 2021 |
|
Review of Senior Cycle |
2021 |
|
Relationships and sexuality education in England, New Zealand, Quebec, and Scotland: Mapping of the key concepts and topics in the curriculum |
2021 |
|
Digital Technology in a redeveloped primary curriculum – a suite of short research papers to support the development and inclusion of digital technology as part of the redeveloped primary curriculum |
2021 |
|
Review of the Junior Cycle SPHE short course |
2021 |
|
Research on Traveller culture and history to support teaching and learning |
2021 |
|
Research report on Education for Sustainable Development in the curriculum in other jurisdictions |
2021 |
|
‘From Purpose to Practice’ – a collaborative document from the Advisory Panel (Primary) supporting the redevelopment of the primary curriculum |
2021 |
|
Perspectives on Integration of Language and Literature (series of papers) commenced and published for post-primary languages |
2021 |
|
Review of the primary curriculum – consultation on proposals for the redevelopment of the primary curriculum began in February 2020. |
2022 |
|
Draft Primary Curriculum Framework – report on Children’s Voices as part of the ongoing consultation on the proposals for the redevelopment of the primary curriculum |
2022 |
|
Joint ERC/Inspectorate Research and Evaluation Study on the Gaeltacht School Recognition Scheme |
December 2022 |
|
Development of an evaluation framework for Teachers' Professional Development |
End 2022 |
|
Evaluation of the Digital Learning Framework |
End 2022 |
|
Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS 2021) |
End 2023 |
|
National Assessment in Mathematics and English Reading (NAMER 2021) |
End 2023 |
|
Children’s School Lives Longitudinal Study |
2024 |
|
Research study on the implementation and impact of the Framework for Junior Cycle |
2024 |
|
Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA 2022) |
Mid 2025 |
436. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education the progress that has been made to date in advancing a new building project for a school (details supplied) since her meeting with the school community including the principal and chairman of the board of management; when she expects construction work to commence; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9705/21]
View answerThe major building project for the school referred to by the Deputy is currently at an advanced stage of architectural planning, Stage 2(b) – Detailed Design, which includes the applications for Planning Permission, Fire Cert and Disability Access Cert and the preparation of tender documents.
The Design Team is currently working on the completion of the Stage 2(b) report which upon completion will be submitted to the Department for review.
In order to expedite the progression of this project the Department has recently authorised the Design Team to commence the pre-qualification process to select a shortlist of contractors for this project in parallel with the completion of the Stage 2(b) report.
Upon receipt, review and approval of the Stage 2(b) report and completion of the pre-qualification process the project will progress to tender and construction stages. My Department and the design team will continue to keep the school fully informed regarding the further progression of this project.
