Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

Educational disadvantage is the issue. Some counties are the first to declare their economic or social disadvantage but it is often the case that students from these counties show participation rates in third level education that are among the highest in the country. I cite County Leitrim to prove my point. It has the highest rate of participation in third level education in the country yet we have all seen programmes in which people talk about its isolation or disadvantage and, therefore, I no longer accept that argument. I wish to focus on the issue of educational disadvantage.

The survey undertaken was very comprehensive and it has been returned by the schools. We will ensure that the size of school will not be a deciding factor but rather the concentration of disadvantage within the school. Clustering will ensure those schools do not lose out. A teacher or a co-ordinator will work with a group of schools to ensure they benefit from the extra facilities which will be put in place. I envisage this scheme will be in place by the end of this year and that it will also include home-school liaison, which is crucially important in tackling disadvantage by linking in with the families. The small school to which the Deputy has referred might be involved in a sharing of facilities.

I have a problem with people taking their children out of schools in towns and sending them out to the rural areas. The schools in the towns are losing teachers while the rural schools are under pressure and are requesting extensions. One school is as good as the next; the buildings do not make a difference but rather the quality of the teaching. People should be loyal to the school nearest to where they live.

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