Vol. 469 No. 7
6 Miss Quill asked the Minister for Education the grounds on which her Department continues to refuse payment of a degree allowance to a single honours graduate of the National University of Ireland currently in the teaching service; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18058/96]
Payment of the honours degree allowance has been refused in this case because only one of the two subjects in the degree examination was taken at honours level. I understand that the issue will be heard before a rights commissioner later this month.
I should also add that this issue formed part of the proposals made to the teachers unions and the school management bodies last February under the terms of the Programme for Competitiveness and Work. The proposals included the payment of the honours degree allowance to holders of all degrees conferred and designated as honours degrees by appropriate awarding authorities irrespective of the number of subjects taken at honours level.
As the Deputy will be aware the proposals were accepted by the INTO but were rejected by the two post-primary teachers unions and are now the subject of further discussions. It is anticipated that this issue will again form part of any final proposals emerging from these discussions.
I thank the Minister for her reply. Will she accept that the personnel of the National University of Ireland, who are the experts on these matters, see no distinction between a single and a joint honours degree? They will defend that in any forum. Why do officials of the Minister's Department persist in making a distinction when the experts in the field do not see any distinction? Is it because they are too miserly to pay an honours allowance to graduates who have earned and deserve it in the eyes of the properly established accreditation bodies?
The Minister is responsible; there should not be any reflection on officials.
The Minister is being miserly.
Essentially, a single honours degree is one where only one of two subjects is taken at honours level. There are comparatively few of those and they emanate mainly from UCC. Most degree allowances at second level are given for two subjects: that is the history of the award. I remind the Deputy, however, that if success had been achieved across the board in the Programme for Competitiveness and Work package put to the teacher unions, and which would include the person to which this question refers, the single subject requirement would no longer be examined by the Department. I understand the person in question has a hearing before the rights commissioner. I am in the process of concluding talks with the teacher unions and, if there is a successful conclusion to them, I am hopeful this will no longer be a specific requirement. That would be the end of the matter for those people who took single honours degree subjects in Cork University.
It would not be my intention to attribute blame to anybody other than the Minister; I know she must take the blame for everything. I apologise profusely to the officials but, in fairness, the Minister cannot be blamed for every "t" that is not crossed or every comma omitted. The distinction that is persistently made displays a remarkable ignorance of what is involved in a single honours degree at UCC. In a single honours degree a student studies ten units of one subject in a most concentrated and detailed manner. The people who make judgements on these matters ought to be the experts of the NUI. They regard a single honours degree as being as valuable and important, academically and otherwise, as a joint degree. It is a disgrace that this particular student is being put to all——
The question is somewhat overlong, Deputy.
I wish the Minister would make a decision on these matters. It is grossly unfair and unjust that a student is put to all the trouble of taking the issue to a rights commissioner before getting justice.
I note the passion with which the Deputy has spoken on behalf of those with a single honours degree. I do not want to take away from the importance of or the quantity and quality of work that would go into it. This is a practice that has grown up, one that it is intended to review. I hope that with a successful outcome of the Programme for Competitiveness and Work talks this matter will not have to be raised again.
What is the Minister's policy on the assessment of honours status for art teachers who have the ATC qualification? What is the current policy on providing an honours allowance to such teachers? Will the Minister agree a substantial level of research is required before one can properly align the teaching salaries of, for example, English teachers and art teachers, who have qualified having had drastically different training?
I invite the Deputy to put a specific question to me about recognition of art teachers. It is not information I have with me. Not just for this case but for the many other challenges on my desk, I hope we will have a successful outcome to the Programme for Competitiveness and Work negotiations when that matter will be resolved.
Is it the Minister's intention to take all steps necessary, in so far as it is within her competence, to ensure that people who have not been given their full honours allowance will be paid retrospectively from the time they commenced their employment.
Matters such as that would also be part of and subject to negotiations. I am aware the person in question is a member of the ASTI, and the ASTI is one of the major players in the negotiations.
