Pat Rabbitte
Ceist:613 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Education and Science if his Department will award disadvantaged status to Assumption Senior Girl's School, Walkinstown, Dublin 12; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12251/02]
Vol. 552 No. 1
613 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Education and Science if his Department will award disadvantaged status to Assumption Senior Girl's School, Walkinstown, Dublin 12; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12251/02]
802 Dr. Upton asked the Minister for Education and Science if his Department will review the situation of a school (details supplied) in Dublin 12 which does not have disadvantaged status. [11870/02]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 613 and 802 together.
Deputies may be aware that I launched the new disadvantage programme "Giving Children An Even Break" last year to deal with educational disadvantage in primary schools. The programme will run over a three-year period and will cost some €33 million. "Giving Children An Even Break" involves the creation of over 200 new primary teaching posts and the allocation of cash grants to 2,143 primary schools in respect of disadvantaged pupils.
"Giving Children an Even Break" subsumes the previous process by which schools that serve areas of educational disadvantage were designated. My Department's approach is now refined to ensure that the individual "at risk" pupils are targeted. Rather than employ the old method of designating additional schools, my Department now provides support that is commensurate with the levels of concentration in schools of pupils with characteristics that are associated with educational disadvantage and early school leaving. These levels of disadvantage were established as a result of a comprehensive and objective survey of all primary schools, carried out in March-April 2000 by the Educational Research Centre, Drumcondra, on my Department's behalf.