Rory O'Hanlon
Ceist:307 Dr. O'Hanlon asked the Minister for Education and Science the position on the provision of Information Technology 2000 in primary schools; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23075/98]
Written Answers. - Computerisation Programme.
I have established the National Centre for Technology in Education, NCTE, to implement the various elements of Schools IT 2000.
Telecom Éireann under the information age schools initiative, as a major partner in Schools IT 2000, has provided all schools with a multimedia computer and is currently providing each of them with an Internet connection. A total of 4,200 computers has been provided under this initiative. Each school is acquiring free installation of a telephone line, free rental of the line for two years, and a number of hours free usage of the line per week for Internet access.
In May of this year I announced the provision of £15 million in grant aid for the purchase of computers under the technology integration initiative of Schools IT 2000. All schools, including primary schools, in the free education system received grants as follows: ordinary schools, a basic grant of £2,000 plus £5 per pupil; special schools, a basic grant of £3,000 plus £20 per pupil.
All ordinary schools with one or more special classes received an additional grant of £1,500 plus £20 per pupil in the special class or classes. I have also made provision for a special allocation of £250,000 to provide ICT hardware for individual children with special needs in mainstream classes at first and second levels.
I am also aware that, in many cases, the grant provided by my Department has been added to significantly at local level by local groups, companies and businesses. Taking all these into account I would estimate that there will be at least 15,000 additional computers in our schools, at primary and post-primary levels, by the end of 1998 and that even the smallest national school will have at least three computers.
A current provision of £3 million has been made this year to provide support for Schools IT 2000 including the provision of training in the use of ICTs in education for teachers. A programme of teacher professional development has already been put in place which has provided courses for at least 9,000 teachers to date, a very large number of these being primary teachers, as part of the teacher skills initiative.
Under the schools support initiative, work is nearing completion on the development of ScoilNet, an outline support service, and all schools will be informed when it comes on line. ScoilNet will also develop a countrywide network in association with the education centres. ScoilNet will be an excellent resource as regards the provision of information, advice and support to all primary and second-level schools on Schools IT 2000 and on educational ICTs issues generally.
The School Integration Project, SIP, which will promote whole school development in relation to ICT integration, is an essential element of Schools IT 2000 and will involve at least 40 schools, including a significant number of primary schools, initially. The NCTE has developed a list of priority areas and detailed criteria for the evaluation of project proposals under the SIP. These have been circulated to all schools with an invitation to submit proposals.
A number of innovative ICT pilot projects involving private sector investment in IT 2000 are in place within the education system. These projects are concerned with software-hardware development and applications and involve a growing number of primary and second-level schools.