Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 3 Jul 1996

Vol. 468 No. 1

Adjournment Debate. - Tralee (Kerry) Special Education Needs.

Mr. Foley

This is a request to the Department of Education to increase the allocation for special education needs from the 1,100 hours set for 1996-97 to 4,000 hours set for 1995-96. For many years, the town of Tralee Vocational Education Committee has been providing for the special education needs of travellers aged 12 to 15 in a two-track initiative at Tralee junior secondary education centre at the Education Centre, Moyderwell, and the special remedial project at Tralee Community College, Clash, Tralee.

This provision has been in place for the past nine years and Tralee Vocational Education Committee wishes to continue to serve this educational need. The initiative has been supported through the special allocation of 4,000 hours from the Department of Education. Tralee Vocational Education Committee notes with regret the proposed reduction of this allocation to 1,100 hours for 1996-97 and cannot understand the reason for this reduction by the Department of Education in view of the excellent record of Tralee Vocational Education Committee.

In the Tralee urban area 42.6 per cent of people who are unemployed received a primary education only. This compares to 38.8 per cent nationally. There are 5,251 permanent households in the Tralee urban area and 2,314 of these houses are provided by the local authority. This is 42 per cent, which is higher than in other similar sized towns. Local authority housing residents are more likely to be disadvantaged because of the high concentrations of unemployment coupled with low levels of education participation and attainment. The average long-term unemployment, 12 months or more, in the Tralee area over four years was 78 per cent. This compares to 49 per cent nationally. This information is taken from the Social Profile Partnership, Tralee Area Action Plan, 1996-99.

Tralee community college has always had an open door policy on the integration of travellers into mainstream education. Of the 39 entrants to Tralee community college in 1996-97, 33 are two years or more behind their chronological age in English. None of the six remaining pupils has reached his or her chronological age in reading. In mathematics, 27 out of 39 are two or more years behind.

Tralee is designated by FÁS in its south-west regional plan for 1996-97 as disadvantaged, as well as north Cork and south Kerry. This disadvantage has an adverse educational effect wherever it occurs, and in Tralee it is most concentrated in Tralee community college. Mainstreaming of such pupils within an examination-oriented curriculum is not an option. It would be counterproductive in the extreme, leading to a serious escalation of an already serious problem of early school leaving. The special remedial project at Tralee community college confers significant benefits on the general body of pupils, which is now more homogenous, with an improvement in classroom management because of lower levels of disruption. The special education needs allocation of 4,000 hours has been servicing the special education needs of travellers in the junior secondary education centre and junior training workshop, travellers integrated into Tralee community college and pupils in Tralee community college who suffer severe educational disadvantage.

These special needs have not gone away, as is painfuly obvious when the reading and mathematical ages of first year entrants are examined. If anything, the educational disadvantage is being concentrated and distilled almost entirely in Tralee community college.

The special remedial projects go some way towards redressing the disadvantage experienced by pupils in Tralee community college. I appeal for the retention of the 4,000 hours that currently support the twin-track initiative and the retention of the services of the fully qualified remedial teachers in Tralee community college and the junior secondary education centre. The Tralee Vocational Education Committee stance is that anything less would be tantamount to consigning these pupils to an education limbo.

VTOS has been in operation in Tralee since September 1990. During that time VTOS students have sat the leaving certificate every year. Many awards and certificates both in the academic and personal development fields have been achieved. There is a comprehensive programme for education and couselling available to VTOS participants. A large number of Tralee town vocational education committee VTOS students have progressed to third level education in institutions such as UCC, UCG, Maynooth and a number of regional technical colleges. Some students are successful in job applications because of their qualifications and personal growth. These successes have been achieved through the work of a teaching team who are dedicated and skilled as a result of in-service training over the past six years. Tralee Vocational Education Committee wants to leave intact a very successful VTOS programme delivered by the existing team of teachers for 1996-97. Retirements, resignations and opting for new redundancy packages will ease pressures of redeployment. This, coupled to the provision of new post-leaving certificate course options and an increased share for Tralee community college of first year entrants within the town, should absorb a significant amount of time of the specialists who are now available to be redeployed.

In view of the excellent record of the town of Tralee Vocational Education Committee, I appeal to the Minister to reverse her decision and retain the status quo of 4,000 hours.

Minister for Education (Ms Bhreathnach)

I am glad the Deputy raised this matter as it affords me an opportunity to inform the House of both the overall provision being made to address the needs of disadvantaged pupils generally and the specific provision being made in the case raised by the Deputy.

I am committed to improving the provision for disadvantaged and special needs pupils. As part of this commitment, additional posts have been allocated to second level schools. The last allocation of such posts was made in 1994 when there were an additional 55 posts. Second level schools were selected for inclusion in the disadvantaged status scheme in accordance with criteria agreed between representatives of school management, teacher unions, parents and the Department of education. Schools were ranked in order of merit on the basis of these criteria and the posts were allocated accordingly.

The factors which were taken into account were the number of pupils whose parents are in receipt of unemployment assistance or benefit, the number in rented local authority housing and non-permanent accommodation, the number from deprived rural backgrounds, the number living with lone parents, the number whose parents hold medical cards, the number who would be unable to cope with everyday demands if they were to leave school and the percentage of pupils who drop out of school at or about 15 years of age without any formal educational qualifications.

In addition to the posts for disadvantaged schools, I also allocated additional ex-quota remedial and resource teacher posts to second level schools in the past two years. A total of 98 remedial teacher posts have been allocated in that time. Some 25 of these were allocated in 1994 and 73 in 1995. Schools to which posts were allocated were selected on the basis of priority of need and the existing provision. Regard was also had to the recommendations of the Department's psychological service.

Some 56 resource teacher posts were allocated to schools in 1995 to cater for special needs pupils. Schools were invited to apply for these posts on a specially designed application form. Selection of the schools was on the basis of the information in the completed application forms and having regard to the recommendations of the inspectorate.

With regard to the specific case referred to by the Deputy, the Department is aware of the situation and the efforts being made by both management and staff to cater for the needs of the disadvantaged pupils attending the school. I take this opportunity to compliment them on their work in this area. To enable the school authorities to cater for these students, specific additional provision has been made by the Department through the allocation of a total of four ex-quota posts for disadvantaged schools and two remedial teacher posts to the school, one of which was allocated as recently as the beginning of the current school year.

Apart from the posts for disadvantaged schools and remedial teacher posts, the school authorities have also been given a specific allocation to cater for the needs of traveller children. This latter allocation is determined by reference to the appropriate pupil-teacher ratio and includes provision for administration and co-ordination work. Earlier this year, the Department notified the school authorities of the approved teacher allocation for the 1996-97 school year. The school authorities recently submitted a detailed appeal for an increase in the allocation to cater for the disadvantaged pupils, including the traveller children. This appeal is under consideration. A response will be issued to the school authorities as soon as possible and the Deputy will be advised of the position.