Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I have a number of questions but there probably will not be enough time to have a full and substantial discussion around all of them. The Minister, Deputy Foley, or the Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, might give a response to me in writing on any points they cannot deal with today.

At the outset, it is important to state that absolutely everybody wants the schools reopened for all our children, particularly those with special educational needs who are at risk of regression while they remain at home. Absolutely nobody wants to stand in the way of that. At the same time, a thorough and substantial conversation is needed about what we can do to ensure that when we bring our children and young people back into schools, they, and their educators, are safe. I spent my lunchtime today on a call with scientists, epidemiologists and behavioural scientists from the Independent Scientific Advisory Group. A point they repeated ad nauseamwas that mitigation is the way to keep schools open and safe for all of their users. I have a number of questions for the Minister and the Minister of State in this regard.

The issue of uniform mask wearing, not only for secondary school students but also for primary school students, gives rise to a difficult conversation. However, if we strip away the emotion and just advance the science, it becomes very clear. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has advocated mask wearing for children aged six to 11, as have the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the US and the World Health Organization. Yet we still are equivocating on the issue. This small measure would make a massive difference, but not on its own. We need to include conversations around ventilation. What is being done in other jurisdictions in terms of the prioritisation of ventilation is making us look a little behind not only the trend but the science. Ventilation incorporates natural ventilation, mechanical ventilation and air monitors. A report by the Joint Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science on the impact of the Covid-19 crisis on education recommended that air monitors should be installed in all schools this year. Another issue is that, bizarrely, we have one definition for what constitutes a close contact in a room outside a school and a very different definition for the school setting. Hygiene in schools is also an area of concern. Much great work has been done in this regard and the Minister will, rightly, mention provision under the structural funds, but we still have schools in this country where pupils do not have access to hot water. That is a very extreme example but it exists. More usually, we have antiquated buildings and overcrowded classrooms. While there has always been an inequality in this regard, it now represents a risk to the health of the children affected. What is being done about that?

The second issue I want to put to the Minister is one I have raised constantly. It concerns children and young people who have not been able to return to school since September because they have a family member with a severe underlying health condition. Those children have been getting an educational experience comparable with their peers since January but, as schools reopen, they will again be at a disadvantage. How will the Department provide remote learning options for those students, not as out-of-school learners but as students in their own right who cannot return to school because it is unsafe for them to do so? I have been asking this question since last September.

The issue of trauma is one on which I want to see the Department take a lead in addressing. There is a wave of trauma in young people approaching in the coming months and years as a consequence of their experience in this pandemic. The Department has allocated 19 extra National Educational Psychological Service, NEPS, teachers and 110 guidance counsellors. There is a budget of €189,000 in 2021 for guidance counsellors but this compares with an allocation of more than €200,000 in 2019. We need to take this issue very seriously.

My last point relates to repeat leaving certificate students. We already had the conversation in 2019 about the importance of having the option of repeating the leaving certificate in enough time to allow students to apply for college the next year. That argument was had and hard won in 2019. We did not get the opportunity to have a repeat leaving certificate examination in time last year but we absolutely need it this year as a minimum requirement. There are any number of reasons that a sixth-year student might not be able to sit the examinations this year, pandemic-related and otherwise. It could be because of the loss of a loved through illness or many other reasons. We need to be able to provide a repeat leaving certificate option for those students in a timely manner.

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