Vol. 484 No. 3
371 Dr. Upton asked the Minister for Education and Science the steps, if any, he has taken to implement a recommendation in a report (details supplied) from the National Centre for Guidance in Education that an effective monitoring procedure be established to ensure that the allocation for guidance services in schools will be used exclusively and specifically for the provision of such services. [21994/97]
Under current regulations, full-time guidance counsellors are required to spend a minimum of three hours per week on ordinary classroom teaching. This requirement is under review.
Where the ex-quota allocation in respect of guidance is 0.5 of a post or less, the allocation must be used exclusively for guidance. The time-tables submitted by school authorities are examined to ensure the allocation is being used for this purpose. In addition, my Department's psychologists monitor the position on the ground.
