Dinny McGinley (Donegal South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am speaking on behalf of the Minister for Education and Skills, who is unavoidably absent. I thank the Deputy for raising this matter, which is one in which I have a personal interest, having taught mathematics for some time in a former career.

As no doubt this House will be aware, the teaching and learning of mathematics, including the level of qualification of teachers of mathematics in Irish classrooms, has been subject to much scrutiny in recent years. For example, research from a number of sources has indicated that there is a cohort of post-primary teachers of mathematics who do not have mathematics to degree level.

The report of the Project Maths implementation support group was published in June 2010. This group was an industry-education partnership set up under the auspices of the Department of Education and Skills to advise on Project Maths. The group recommended that postgraduate courses be provided for current teachers of mathematics who do not hold an appropriate qualification. The professional diploma in mathematics for teaching is designed to address this recommendation. In 2012, following a tendering process, a consortium comprising the Centre for Excellence in Mathematics Education in the University of Limerick and the National University of Ireland, Galway, was awarded the contract to develop this programme.

The course is a part-time two-year university-accredited professional diploma at Level 8 on the National Framework of Qualifications. It is a blended learning programme based on local delivery for the face-to-face elements as well as online modules. It is available to teachers nationwide free of charge, with specific provision for teachers in Irish-medium schools, which, incidentally, I welcome. Funding of almost €3.3 million has been made available to date for this programme. The course began in September 2012 with 323 teachers, who are now about to embark on their second year of this programme of study. This September, 302 teachers commenced the course as the second intake.

As regards eligibility, an applicant must meet the following criteria: proof of registration with the Teaching Council; confirmation that the applicant is teaching in a recognised post-primary school; confirmation in writing from the principal of his or her school confirming that the teacher is currently teaching mathematics and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future; and a declaration that the applicant's existing qualifications are not sufficient to meet Teaching Council criteria for the purposes of teaching of mathematics at post-primary level. The criteria reflect the aim of the programme to improve the skills of those teachers who are currently in our classrooms teaching mathematics, but who are out of field.

All aspects of the programme are subject to regular review by a monitoring group comprising representatives of the Department of Education and Skills and the contractor. Policy in this important area will also be informed by the work of the Inspectorate. In addition, Deputy Sherlock, Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills, has visited the University of Limerick and met some of the teacher participants. He was struck by their dedication and enthusiasm for teaching mathematics. Participation in this demanding course reflects their professional attitude to professional development and improving practice and standards in their classrooms, and they are to be commended on this.

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