Ms Arlene Forster:

I thank the Senator for the points she made about the review. We appreciate it. The Senator highlighted the two new subjects the Minister has asked us to develop and on which we are beginning work. I would add that in the advisory report, there is an acknowledgement that there may very well be other subjects, modules or units we will need to develop, and we have already identified the fact that young people need more opportunities in the technical, vocational and professional areas, in particular. An audit is under way to assist us in identifying the other subjects or modules we need to consider.

We have not yet got into the detail of what the pilot network of schools will include. It is important to note, and this is characteristic of any networks with which the NCCA works, that we will ensure the network is representative of the different school contexts and the diversity of school contexts that make up, in this case, post-primary education. That will be important, given the work these network schools will be involved in. It is our experience that when we put the emphasis on that representation, it invariably gives us regional representation as well.