Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 November 2013
237. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Education and Skills if dyscalculia is accepted by his Department as a disability which qualifies school children for learning supports such as resource teaching or special needs assistance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50577/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI wish to advise the Deputy that all schools have been allocated additional teaching resources to cater for children with high incidence special educational needs, including Specific Learning Disability (SLD), of which dyscalculia is one such Specific Learning Disability. All mainstream Primary schools have been allocated additional teaching resources under the General Allocation Model (GAM) to cater for children with high incidence special educational needs, including SLDs. It is a matter for individual schools to use their professional judgement to identify pupils who will receive this support and to use the resources available to the school to intervene at the appropriate level with such pupils. Schools are supported in this regard by the National Educational Psychological Services. All Post Primary schools have also been allocated additional teaching resources for pupils with high incidence special educational needs, including SLDs.
My Department provides guidelines for schools in relation to the utilisation of additional teaching resources which have been allocated to them for pupils with high incidence special educational needs. These include Circular SpEd 02/05, Inclusion of Pupils with Special Educational Needs Post Primary Guidelines and the National Educational Psychological Services (NEPS) Continuum of Support Guidelines. Further resources are also provided to schools to support pupils with SLDs. Funding is provided for the purchase of specialised equipment such as computers and/or software to assist children with special educational needs, including children with SLDs, once relevant professionals recommend the equipment as being essential for the provision of education. Schools can apply to the local Special Educational Needs Organiser (SENO) directly for this support.
Special Needs Assistants are allocated to schools by the National Council for Special Education in order to assist schools to cater for the care needs of pupils with special educational needs who have been assessed as having care needs which require support in the class room. SNA support is therefore allocated to pupils who have been assessed as having such care needs, as opposed to being allocated on the basis of a particular disability diagnosis.
