Ned O'Keeffe
Ceist:183 Mr. N. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Education and Science the situation in relation to Section 3 - Current Policy on Retention - of primary circular 11/01 (details supplied). [14946/02]
Written Answers. - Primary Schools Retention Policy.
The circular referred to by the Deputy issued to schools in March 2001. The board of management of each school should have advised parents of the terms of the circular when they received it from my Department.
In accordance with the terms outlined in the circular, the principal teacher should consult with the learning support teacher and class teacher of a pupil if an application for retention is received from the parents. If all parties conclude that a pupil would benefit educationally by being held back for a second year the pupil may be retained.
However, a record outlining the educational basis for the decision to retain a pupil in class for a second year should be kept for any pupil so retained. In addition, there should be a clear programme outlined for such a pupil that records precisely what new approach will be used for her-him and what its expected benefit will be. These records should be retained within the school and should be brought to the inspector's attention by the principal when she or he visits the school. A pupil should not be held back for longer than one year in a primary school.