Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael)

I welcome the fact that the Minister has given a commitment to review the position of DEIS band one and band one schools in the context of the recent budget changes. He has taken a proactive approach to this matter and just prior to Christmas he indicated that he would be prepared to consider the position of schools on a case-by-case basis. I welcome that development. Schools have engaged in a proactive response to his call and I have already been contacted by the principal of Scoil Colmcille, Glengad, who, during the Christmas period, carried out a statistical analysis of the benefits of the DEIS programme. I congratulate her on doing so and encourage other school principals to follow her lead.

The principal in question informed me that she never thought she would be in a position to carry out such an analysis but that it had proven to be a good exercise. She indicated that the number of children under the 16th percentile in maths has dropped from 30% to 10% in the period since 1999. In the context of literacy, the figure has decreased from 31% to 8.9%. The principal also pointed out that an indicator of the success of the supports that were put in place is the number of children completing secondary school and proceeding to third level. In 1998 some 24% of children were leaving school without sitting the leaving certificate whereas this had dropped to 6% by 2011. In 1998, only 9% of children from the Glengad area were going on to third level whereas in 2011 the figure was 73%. Statistics of this nature are important.

I know the Minister is going to work with school authorities, boards of management, parents and fellow politicians in the context of considering educational reform in its entirety. I am also aware that he is going to be a reforming Minister. I am confident in his ability to listen to people. He met the patrons of smaller religious schools before Christmas. In that context, I welcome the fact that he is already engaged in dealing with this matter. Unlike his counterpart in Northern Ireland, he is not going to close down schools. In the past week the Minister for Education in Northern Ireland announced the closure of Aghavilly and Keady primary schools. The Minister for Education and Skills is not in the business of closing schools. He is, rather, in the business of achieving reform with fewer resources. He is going to be proactive and intends to take a bottom-up approach.

We must use this Chamber in a proactive way and we must display a degree of maturity. Let us, therefore, put forward constructive proposals. As Deputy Daly pointed out, the biggest temptation in politics - we were open to it when in opposition but we showed a degree of maturity - is to grandstand, jump up and down and play to the gallery. That is not the way to do business. If we show a sense of maturity, we will achieve results in respect of the reform of the education system overall.

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