Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 17 January 2024
500. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Education if she will ring fence dedicated funding to enable children suffering from economic disadvantage to participate in in-school activities such as drama, music, educational and cultural school trips; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [56644/23]
View answerMy Department provides a wide range of supports to all schools, DEIS and non-DEIS, to support the inclusion of all students and address barriers to students achieving their potential. Participation in school activities such as drama, music, and educational and cultural school trips is an important factor in the education of children and young people in Ireland.
Building on the success of the Creative Ireland Programme 2017-2022, the Government extended the programme for another five years to 2027. As one of the 5 Pillars of the Programme, the cross Departmental new Creative Youth Plan 2023-2027, which was launched in March last year, will further embed and integrate creativity in all its different forms to support the hardest to reach children and young people. The Creative Youth Plan is designed to enable the creative potential of every child and young person.
The new Creative Youth Plan provides everyone from birth to 24 years with even more opportunities to experience and to enjoy all that art and creativity can bring. Within the Department of Education, programmes such as BLAST and Creative Clusters are key in-school programmes developed under Creative Youth and have shown us the benefits creative engagement can bring for children and young people.
In October I announced the latest updates to BLAST and Creative Clusters as part of the Creative Youth Plan 2023 – 2027.
Creative Clusters is an initiative of my Department, led by and in partnership with the Education Support Centres Ireland (ESCI). Creative Clusters provide schools with access to creative people, skills and resources that will support them to draw on their own skills and experiences and those within their wider communities.
In October I was also pleased to announce that 425 schools have been selected to take part in the BLAST 2023 initiative under the Creative Youth Pillar of the Creative Ireland Programme. I welcome these schools into the new initiative in 2023 which brings live arts to students and teachers. To date over 1,500 schools have successfully applied for a BLAST residency since its inception in 2021.
The BLAST initiative will provide additional opportunities for schools to collaborate with established artists and creatives, supporting our children and young people to collaborate and engage in creative and critical thinking, all crucial skills for their futures. The aim of this scheme is to give pupils in schools all over the country the opportunity to work with a professional artist on unique projects. These bespoke residency projects will be originated and planned between the artist, teacher and the school under the coordination of the ESCI network of 21 full-time Education Centres. Each residency is worth €1,100 which is fully funded by the Department of Education and the local Education Centre will pay the Artist for a 20-hour residency which will be delivered throughout the academic year, from September 2023. I look forward to seeing how these exciting artist in residency opportunities in schools develop over the coming year.
The primary Arts Education curriculum is for all children from junior infants to sixth class and consists of three subjects: Music, Drama and Visual arts. The curriculum enables children to explore and express ideas, feelings and experiences through music, drama and the visual arts.
The current curriculum was introduced as part of the Primary School Curriculum (1999). The primary curriculum is under review and redevelopment with the Primary Curriculum Framework published in March 2023. The new Arts Education specification is under development which is subject to robust research and consultation. A public consultation on the arts specification along with other specifications for the primary curriculum will commence in spring 2024. It is expected that the specifications will be introduced into schools in the 2025/2026 school year.
DEIS is the main policy initiative of my Department to tackle educational disadvantage at school level. Schools in the DEIS Programme are required to develop and implement three-year improvement plans as a condition of their participation in DEIS. Targets are set under key themes, such as attendance, retention, progression, literacy and numeracy, partnership, transition, wellbeing and examination attainment (post-primary).
My Department spends €180m annually in supporting schools in the DEIS programme, of which, over €20m is allocated to schools by way of a DEIS grant.
The DEIS grant should be utilised to attain the targets set in the school's three year improvement plan across the DEIS themes. It is a matter for the Board of Management of each school to allocate DEIS grant funding so that it targets those students deemed most in need. This may include allocating a proportion of the DEIS grant funding towards the cost of school activities such as drama, music, educational and cultural school trips.
My Department recognises the crucial role that regular school attendance plays in achieving educational and social inclusion. With this understanding, I announced the Attendance Campaign Support Grant for the academic year 2023/24. This grant is a once-off payment provided to all primary and post-primary schools across Ireland last October.
The objective of this grant is to bolster the National School Attendance Campaign run by my Department. The grant has a dual focus: it aims to enhance regular school attendance while also targeting individuals and groups at higher risk of educational disadvantage due to poor attendance records.
Schools have the flexibility to use this grant within the current academic year or spread it over a longer period to align with their individual School Self-Evaluation Report and Improvement Plan or their DEIS Action Plan for Improvement. This could involve early years settings, primary schools, and post-primary schools working together to address issues related to attendance, especially among children and young people at risk of educational disadvantage. This may include allocating a proportion of the Attendance Support Grant funding towards the cost of school activities such as drama, music, educational and cultural school trips.
The Attendance Support Grant is designed to address attendance issues in a targeted and equitable manner. The progressive universalism inherent in its allocation ensures that while all schools benefit, those with the greatest needs receive the most support. This grant is a testament to my Department's ongoing commitment to fostering an education system where every child has an equal opportunity to achieve their potential.
