Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 25 January 2022
378. Deputy John Paul Phelan asked the Minister for Education if a child who is deemed high-risk of contracting Covid-19 and is being home-schooled will be marked absent from school; if the authorities will be contacted to investigate the reason this is done in cases in which there are too many absences in the school year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3204/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department has provided guidance to schools in relation to the recording and reporting of Covid-19 related absences. Covid-19 related absences arising from pupils/students who have been requested to self-isolate by a medical professional or for pupils/students who feel unwell with symptoms consistent with Covid-19 must be recorded in accordance with the school’s normal procedures for the notification and recording of absences. However these Covid-19 related absences should be noted by the school as explained absences.
Notwithstanding the current Covid-19 related environment that schools are now operating in, the statutory requirements for reporting pupil absenteeism will continue as normal. In this respect, the Education (Welfare) Act requires the principal of a recognised school to maintain records of the attendance or non-attendance on each school day of each pupil registered at that school. Schools maintain a school register and a school roll. The purpose of the school register is to preserve a permanent record of the school history of each pupil/student. The purpose of the school roll is to record the daily and cumulative attendance of individual pupils/students. A pupils/students name will be recorded as removed from the school roll following an absence of 20 consecutive days. This is in accordance with the requirements of Department Circular 0028/2013.
The decision to home school means that parents are effectively removing their children from school and the school will have no further role in their children’s teaching and learning for the duration of the home schooling. The decision to home school may also have implications for the children’s school place should parents wish for their children to return to school at a later date.
Where a child is removed from school for the purpose of home schooling, the pupil/student’s name will be recorded as removed from the school roll following 20 consecutive absences. In addition schools are required under the Education Welfare Act 2000 to also notify the Education Welfare Service of Tusla when the aggregate number of school days on which a pupil is absent during a school year reaches 20 days. The pupil/student’s education record remains on the school register and the only change that occurs is that the status of the pupil/student’s education record is updated to reflect the fact that the pupil has left the school. Decisions therefore in relation to educating children outside of school are best made in consultation with the child’s school and Tusla’s Education Support Service (TESS).
The Education (Welfare) Act 2000 section 14 sets out that Tusla is required to maintain a register of all children in receipt of education in a place other than a recognised school. The provisions of the Act outline that, where a parent chooses to educate, or have educated, his or her child in a place other than a recognised school he or she shall apply to Tusla to have the child concerned registered on the register.
