Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 15 February 2023
110. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Education if there are any plans to update circulars (details supplied) given the current shortage of secondary school teachers which may encourage more teachers to return to work here; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7499/23]
View answerMy Department is undertaking a comprehensive programme to support the supply of teachers. A number of measures are being implemented, including:
- a range of special, temporary arrangements introduced by HEIs to create greater capacity for student teachers to provided substitute cover,
- adjustment of the provision of continuing professional development (CPD) to reduce the need for substitution and to provide additional personnel to support schools,
- increasing the additional hours that post primary teachers can teach each term from 20 to 35 for the remainder of the 2022/23 school year,
- launching a communications campaign to encourage retired teachers to take up short-term substitute positions and to enable them to teach for up to 50 days in each of the calendar years 2021 to 2023 without, in most cases, a reduction in their pension,
- providing the allocated staffing resources for the 2023/34 school year to post-primary schools on 26 January and to primary schools on 31 January,
- introduction, by the Teaching Council of regulations to allow the registration of 3rd and 4th year undergraduate student teachers, which has led to over 2,100 student teachers applying for registration,
- providing for fully funded upskilling programmes in mathematics, physics and Spanish. Beginning with 170 places in January 2021, I have agreed to increase places to over 300 in 2023, and a new Irish upskilling programme is planned for 2023/24,
- providing for the allocation of a significant number of additional posts to primary substitute teacher supply panels in areas where significant challenges in sourcing substitution continue. This brings the total to 610 posts on 151 panels covering more than 2,840 schools,
- allowing job sharing teachers to be employed to work in a substitute capacity, during the period they are rostered off duty, in their own or in other schools on a temporary basis for the 2022/23 school year, and
- suspending, on a temporary basis, the limits on substitute work that apply to teachers on career break for the 2022/23 school year.
These measures are underpinned by the Teaching Transforms campaign which promotes the teaching profession and encourages students to follow a career in teaching.
Despite the positive impact of these important actions, work remains to be done to address teacher supply challenges, particularly to ensure the availability of sufficient numbers of substitute teachers.
My Department continues to work intensively with all stakeholders to develop and implement creative solutions to address the teacher supply challenges for schools.
Circulars 29/2007 and 29/2010 provide for the recognition of prior post-primary service for incremental credit purposes. The criteria for the award of incremental credit to recognised teachers was agreed under the auspices of the Teachers Conciliation Council (TCC).
A number of claims regarding the award of incremental credit to teachers have been lodged at TCC and are still under consideration. My Department will review these circulars when agreement has been reached at TCC with regard to those claims.
