Vol. 349 No. 2
asked the Minister for Education if she will retain an ex quota member of the staff at St. Enda's mixed national school, Whitefriars Street, Dublin 8 in the capacity of assistant teacher for the 1984-85 school year, in view of the report submitted to her Department recently regarding the level of social and educational disadvantage in this school; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
9.
asked the Minister for Education if she will appoint a remedial teacher to St. Enda's mixed national school, Whitefriars Street, Dublin, in view of the report submitted recently to her Department regarding the urgent need for remedial teaching at this school; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 8 and 9 together.
Could I ask the Minister to deal with these issues separately? There are a number of fundamental distinctions although I accept that the overall picture is common.
That is a matter for the Minister.
I wish to take the two questions together.
I have no control over that.
The Deputy will find it quite satisfactory because the two are very much related. They refer to the same school.
I would like, in terms of the relationship to the subject matter of the Programme for Action, if the Minister would treat the two subjects separately.
It is entirely a matter for the Minister. We used to have "With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle" and two questions were taken together. That has now been removed and the Ceann Comhairle has no say in the matter.
I will give my judgement after the Minister has finished.
The two questions relate to the same school and I propose to take them together. St. Enda's National School, Whitefriar Street, has had the services of one full-time remedial teacher since 30 August 1974. The level of staffing generally in this school will be considered at the appropriate time by my Department in the light of the report to which the Deputy refers.
I would like to correct the Minister. It is not true to say that this school has had a full-time——
A question please?
Would the Minister accept that it is not accurate to say that this school has had a full-time remedial teacher since 1974? That teacher has had to undertake other major tasks at the school. Could I have clarification on that point?
I understand that the fact that the existing remedial teacher is also acting as principal teacher may be giving rise to some difficulties.
I take extreme resentment at that kind of remark from the Minister because, after all, her Department are the Department who sanctioned such a situation.
It is a fact.
Will the Minister confirm that previous principals of that school who were remedial teachers also had other duties?
I cannot confirm that.
Would the Minister check back on her records to confirm that?
I am sure I can but not now.
When is it proposed to make a final decision in both cases?
At the moment a review is being undertaken generally on the question of staffing of schools in this area. We hope that the decisions can be taken as near as possible to this point but it is not possible to say exactly when the review will be made.
What did the Minister find inadequate about the reports submitted to her Department for attention?
I beg the Deputy's pardon.
What is there about the reports submitted to her Department which seems inadequate and does not now enable her to take a decision on this matter? Is it correct that the Minister has no money left in her Department for the sanctioning of remedial teachers for 1984-85?
I did not say that I considered there was anything inadequate in the report given to me about the school. The Department of Education must examine every report given to them from every school.
In view of the social content of the report would the Minister appoint the extra teacher and would she also give the appointment of a remedial teacher priority in this case?
There are very many schools in these areas that have particular difficulties of the kind that the Deputy mentions. As I have already pointed out, the special facilities given to these schools will receive the kind of priority they have over the last few years. I can assure the Deputy of that.
Since this school is in the Taoiseach's constituency, has the Minister consulted the Taoiseach for his observations on this matter?
That is a separate question.
The Minister treated two aspects similarly here——
I am calling on Deputy Taylor. I will come back to Deputy Fitzgerald.
Would the Minister confirm that there are precedents in the Department that schools located in areas of social and educational disadvantage do have ex-quota members of staff supplied to them?
Could the Deputy please repeat that question?
Are there precedents in the Minister's Department under which schools located in areas of social and educational disadvantage do have ex-quota members of staff supplied to them or authorised for them?
Yes, there have been such allocations made.
The Minister dealt in the main with the question of the remedial teacher. Regarding the question of the ex-quota teacher, how soon before the termination of the current school year can these decisions be taken to enable the principal to take decisions in the best interests of good organisation for the coming school year?
I can assure the Deputy that the decision will be taken in good time to give the principal of the school sufficient time to plan.
