Michael Finucane
Ceist:10 Mr. Finucane asked the Minister for Education and Science the plans, if any, to invite submissions for another round of the early school leavers initiative during this school year. [20026/99]
Other Questions. - Early School Leavers.
The purpose of the current pilot phase of this initiative is to test models of response to the problem of early school leaving with a view to identifying effective approaches to the problem which could be replicated across the education system. A total of 14 project areas have been selected to participate in the present phase of the initiative. The areas selected cover both urban and rural locations. Each project involves local first and second level schools, as well as local partnership groups, community groups and statutory and voluntary organisations. The current phase of this programme will operate from September 1998 to June 2000. The programme is being evaluated by the Children's Research Centre in Trinity College. The final evaluation report is expected by September 2000. The question of extending the early school leavers programme to further areas will be considered in the light of the outcome of the evaluation of the present pilot phase.
The Deputy will be aware that I also recently announced a £4.5 million initiative aimed at keeping pupils in school up to the end of the leaving certificate. Marking a significant departure from traditional policy, the funding will be granted to schools on the basis of plans which they will be helped to design. At the core of this initiative will be a multi-annual written retention plan or agreement drawn up between the school and my Department. This will provide for a range of targeted measures directed at the particular needs of the school, together with clear projected outcomes in terms of increased retention. A key requirement of the individual retention plans will be that the school, as the driver of the initiative, operates on a multi-agency basis and establishes appropriate cross-community links in delivering on its commitments. Implementation of this initiative will commence shortly.
Does the Minister agree the decision must have been a bitter disappointment to the 111 applicants who were not selected even though many of them had formed effective partnerships covering several schools and outside agencies?
Hear, hear.
Does he agree that making this scheme a pilot and waiting until 2001 for its possible extension is poor consolation especially when the Minister gave £250 million to the technology sector at the drop of a hat, although it was welcome. However, early school leavers, who should be a priority, are given £3 million or £4 million and told to wait until 2001 when they may get a little more. People are committed to this issue. Will the Minister allocate another tranche and initiate a rolling review?
No, I do not agree. It is a nonsense to suggest expanding a pilot before it is evaluated. The point in having pilot initiatives is to develop models of best practice.
We have pilots coming out of our ears.
We do not, particularly at second level. We are not depending on this initiative alone. We have provided £4.5 million for second level schools which have completion difficulties in terms of the number of students who remain until senior cycle. A range of other resource allocations have been made to primary and second level schools to improve their capacity to combat disadvantage.
I asked the Minister before summer recess the number of ongoing pilot studies in his Department, the number under evaluation and the small number, if any, projected to become mainstream. My question is simple, will they be listed in the annual report of the Department—
They are.
—so we will know how pilotless or piloted we are. I assume if a pilot study is successful it will be made policy in a defined time. That will be in the annual report.
That is right. Obviously that is the purpose of a pilot.
There is no need to pilot these schemes. We know that already.
Deputy Higgins should know the number of pilots in the Department, it is not a huge exercise to find that information. When he was in Government he and his colleagues initiated a number of them.
The Minister has not mainstreamed some excellent ones.
Because they have not been evaluated. It is ridiculous to establish a pilot scheme, then not wait for evaluation and continue to pour money into it.
It is being put on the long finger.
Please allow the Minister to conclude.
It is not. We have put more resources into primary education the past two years
We do not want to hear that—
Of course the Deputies do not want to hear it because it compares favourably with their record.
Not at all.
It does.
I did not hire anybody to print these songs of praise.
It is nothing to with that. Any logical person could not suggest that if we are genuine about the concept of a pilot, we should not wait for it to be evaluated to see the results. It makes no sense.
What about the annual report?
Has the outreach programme and the social guarantee register, where schools forward the names of students who leave school early to the Department, been effective? That service could be developed to a greater extent and used to identify early school leavers. It has not been used enough.
We know the retention rate of every secondary school in the country. That research was conducted by the Department and led to the retention initiative to allow us target resources at the schools with the greatest difficulties in terms of keeping pupils until senior cycle. That initiative, like others, will be expanded.
The time is up on that question, we will now move on to Question No. 11.