Seán Kenny
Ceist:75 Mr. S. Kenny asked the Minister for Education if she will provide a resource teacher for the North Bay national school project, Dublin 5; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5750/95]
Written Answers. - Teacher Appointments.
The role of the resource teacher is to act in support of ordinary teaching staff in meeting the special needs of children with disabilities attending ordinary classes. To date, a total of 26 such posts have been allocated to the primary school sector. I intend to allocate an additional ten resource teacher posts to primary schools in 1995. These posts will be allocated on the basis of priority of need following the collection of data by my Department's primary inspectorate.
My Department has not received an application for a resource teacher from North Bay national school project. However, if an application is submitted to my Department, the matter will be fully considered in the context of the allocation of posts in 1995.
Joe Walsh
Ceist:76 Mr. J. Walsh asked the Minister for Education if she will ensure the retention of a remedial teacher at Our Lady of Mercy national school, Bantry, County Cork. [5753/95]
I am pleased to inform the Deputy that the remedial teaching post at Our Lady of Mercy national school, Bantry will be retained. However, the school will lose its tenth assistant's post at the end of the current school year. This is because the staffing of national schools for a particular year is determined by the enrolment of the school on 30 September of the previous year.
The total enrolment of Our Lady of Mercy national school on 30 September 1994 was 282 pupils, which warrants a staffing in the 1995-96 school year of a principal and nine assistants. Accordingly, the tenth assistant's post will be suppressed at the end of the current school year. The teacher in question has been given the option of having his name placed on the diocesan panel for redeployment, which will not take place before 1 September 1995.
In addition to the staffing details which I have mentioned above, this school has the services of two full time special additional assistant teachers who cater for the special needs of pupils suffering mild and moderate degrees of handicap and who are included in the overall enrolment of the school.