asked the Minister for Education if she will give details of remedial teaching in Irish post-primary schools since its inception to 1985, including the type of training involved for teachers; the percentage of post-primary schools that had a remedial teacher in each school year from inception to 1985; and the percentage of pupils who were provided with remedial teaching during each of those school years.
Written Answers. - Remedial Education.
97.
Special training courses in remedial education for post-primary teachers were introduced by the Department of Education in 1971-72. A total of 308 remedial teachers for post-primary schools were trained between 1971-72 and 1977-78.
As remedial teachers were not a specific category in post-primary schools during that period, it is not possible, to give the number of such teachers employed in post-primary schools. Where a need was established for the provision of remedial education for pupils in these schools, such education was provided by teachers who, in addition to possessing the normal qualifications required of teachers in the schools, were deemed to be competent to undertake remedial education, usually as a result of attendance at the special in-service courses organised by my Department.
Remedial teachers in post-primary schools were regarded as ex-quota from the commencement of the 1979-80 school-year. A hundred such posts were approved in 1979-80 and in 1980-81 a further 100 posts were approved. 37 posts were approved for post-primary schools in 1985-86 and 55 remedial-guidance posts were approved in 1986-87 in post-primary schools catering for disadvantaged pupils.
In addition, many post-primary schools employ within their approved quota of posts remedial teachers who have been trained in the area of remedial education.
It is not possible on the basis of the data available to calculate the percentage of pupils who were provided with remedial teaching during each of those school years.