Vol. 516 No. 1
134 Mr. Hayes asked the Minister for Education and Science the support, if any, which exists in primary education for children who are mildly handicapped and want to remain within mainstream education; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7172/00]
The special educational needs of children with a mild general learning disability are capable of being met within the mainstream school system, either through placement in a special class attached to a mainstream school or through placement on a fully integrated basis in an ordinary class with the support of the resource teacher service.
At present, there are 286 special classes for children with mild general learning disabilities attached to mainstream primary schools. These classes operate at a pupil teacher ratio of 11:1.
Arising from a Government decision of October 1998 all children with special needs, including those with a mild general learning disability, who attend ordinary primary schools on a fully integrated basis now have an automatic entitlement to a response to their needs. The nature of the response will depend on the assessed needs of each individual child. In the case of children with a mild general learning disability, the required response will normally take the form of resource teacher support.
