Gareth Scahill (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister and her team. She has gone through much of what I had here in relation to capitation grants and transport. On leaving certificate reform and reducing the intense pressure of a single exam, I welcome the additional assessment components and the new curriculum, the drama, film and theatre and especially the climate action and sustainable development subjects. They are very welcome.

I have had a lot of feedback from schools on the leaving certificate engineering syllabus. I have made a number of representations in the Seanad on apprenticeships in the last couple of months. Teachers are worried about the practical element of the exam going. A teacher contacted me to say that at a time when there is a shortage of personnel with practical skills in Ireland, mechanics, plumbers, mechanical engineers and toolmakers to name but a few, it seems a conflict of interest to remove the only true assessment of machine and bench skills that we need now more than ever. Will the Minister speak on leaving certificate reform?

I have been out visiting schools in the area I come from. Many are rural schools with very few teachers. The Department’s small-schools pilot programme in 2021 provided schools with an opportunity for economies of scale, shared resources and administration support. The feedback I hear is very positive. Has the Minister plans to roll it out? Will she expand on that further?

Returning to Deputy Roche’s remarks about the interventions on absenteeism, how successful are the interventions in schools? Will she expand a little more on her plan to tackle that?