Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Tá sé ina Chathaoirleach don lá, ar aon nós.

I welcome much of what the Minister said today and acknowledge that some of the suggestions made by Fianna Fáil and other parties in Dáil Éireann over the last number of weeks have, in fact, been implemented.

I particularly welcome the role played by Dr. Fernando Cartwright in the process surrounding the calculated grades system, and the Minister's announcement of an independent monitoring committee for the process. That is crucial, and the Minister is correct. Generally speaking, the process has gone off without a hitch so far. I am aware from talking with teachers and students that we are not in an ideal scenario, but this will significantly help public confidence in the process and address some of the issues that I and others have raised in this House. They are genuine issues, and nobody wants anything but the best possible outcomes for the class of 2020 and, indeed, their colleagues coming up the line whose progression depends on a successful outcome of this entire process.

It is welcome that the Minister is due to meet the Ombudsman for Children in the context of reopening schools. Fianna Fáil has raised the need for strong advocacy for children and students in the discussion surrounding the opening of schools. This now seems to be taking place, and while it is important to talk to the stakeholders, the most important stakeholders are the children themselves. While the Irish Second-Level Students' Union, ISSU, does a fantastic job at secondary level, I was somewhat concerned that at primary level, in particular, the same advocacy is not necessarily there for the child. The ombudsman is certainly playing his part with the Minister in that regard.

The Taoiseach's clear commitment last Friday to reopening schools was welcome, and we while are all too aware of the long-term impact of school closures, we are aware anecdotally. I want to see some level of research done as to what exactly the gaps were in these last few months. Did we learn from it, and do we know what exactly we are catching up with in the new school year?

The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, NCCA, review of senior cycle needs to be fully considered in the context of plans to reopen schools in September. The process for the leaving certificate has been underway since 2016. The documents published by the NCCA clearly would not have had a focus on Covid-19, but we have learned a great deal about the leaving certificate over the past few weeks, in particular, that should inform the NCCA as to what direction we need to go. I am looking for robust research on what has happened over the past few weeks, the processes that have been engaged in, and how they will benefit the class of 2021, 2022 and others in the long term.

I will turn my attention briefly to the financial situation in higher education. On top of the upcoming and current demographic bulge we are seeing moving from primary into secondary school, higher education is facing not only that bulge but a shortfall of approximately €0.5 billion over the next few years due to Covid-19. We know universities and colleges are doing their best to try to get classes online and see how they will provide college courses next year. It is also fair to say that many are struggling, first of all with the availability of technical people who do this type of work and who are in short supply globally.

We must make sure that our colleges are financially capable of doing their job. The aspiration and reality of higher education that has been available to generations in this country must not be denied to students this year or next year or denied to the students who are already in higher education. There may be a fall in international student numbers and reduced funding for research, particularly from the private sector, as a result of Covid-19. Given the likely fall in the number of students attending campus, it is not feasible for third level institutions to meet the shortfall by themselves. A targeted programme of financial support will be required and I will certainly be urging the Minister to provide same and to focus his attention on higher education.

We know that higher education and the knowledge economy will play a vital role in driving our economy and it is fantastic that the general public has been able to see that on a daily basis on the news. People sometimes think of our third level institutions as places for their children to go to college or as tourist attractions. What we have seen throughout the Covid-19 pandemic is the level of expertise that exists in this country to the fore in terms of informing the public and advising the Government. This is really good and we must get back to a societal appreciation and understanding of the academy informing society, guiding us on what we should be doing, gathering the information and doing the research in order to improve the country. So many lessons have been learned about education in the past few months. We now have a chance to open up education in a way not seen before. We have not seen this type of external advisory board in the Department of Education and Skills for quite some time. It is very welcome to have outside input to the advisory board on the leaving certificate. There will be more opportunities for similar over the next few years.

We must streamline the demands on school management in the context of initiative overloading. I am somewhat concerned about the Minister's statement regarding summer programmes. Essentially, he asked that summer programmes be run or outsourced by boards of management and spoke about the availability and willingness of schools and teachers. He asked schools, teachers and SNAs to get involved during the summer and, while I endorse this ask, I do not think it is sustainable in the longer term for the provision of education to those who are disadvantaged or who have special needs to depend on the Minister standing up in the Dáil and asking people to participate. I am sure people will rise to the challenge this year but we need to make sure we can do this properly. The way the education system is structured in this country at the moment means that boards of management have a huge burden of responsibility. Sometimes they do not have the necessary training and sometimes individual members do not have the time required to meet the responsibilities foisted on them and everything goes back to the school principal, who is often under stress and pressure dealing with other issues. We need to look at giving parent councils a real role in the coming years. Parents have been to the fore in supporting their children's education in the past few weeks too and they need to take on a much bigger role in schools. We must always heed expert advice when it is made available to us.

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