Ms Deirdre MacDonald:

I wish to address a couple of issues that have come up in the contributions of the last number of speakers. The first relates to health advice. We do not crystal ball-gaze and we are not medical experts. We are educationalists and we will stick by whatever advice is given to us by the medical experts, namely, NPHET and the HPSC.

The Deputy spoke of vulnerable teachers, and indeed vulnerable students, but I am going to speak from the perspective of the vulnerable teachers. In health and safety we already have what is called "reasonable accommodation". That concept needs to be extended to include Covid-related illness and accommodation to that. Teachers will want to work, be it from home or in whatever capacity; they will want to do it. In an allied area, in recent years sick leave has been cut dramatically so we need to be cognisant of this issue to allay the fears and stop the anxieties. We hear constantly about the importance of mental health. If we can plan in advance and get these issues dealt with, we will save everybody, that is, the management and, most importantly, the individuals the anxiety in this regard.

Deputy Burke asked about the current fifth years, that is, the students going into sixth year. They are indeed a unique group facing unique problems; their education has been grossly interrupted. We need to work with the State Examinations Commission to ensure that the break in their education can be accommodated. That is best done through the assessment tool, as some of my colleagues here have mentioned, as well as taking account of both the written examinations and of the subjects with practical elements. We need to be inclusive in the assessment tools but to work with the State Examinations Commission in doing that and to do it early on. We ask that the fears of the students and their teachers be allayed as soon as possible.