Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin Bay North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State was coming to the second point I raised. It is not just about the workload, but also the expertise. Every Deputy in the Chamber will appreciate that principals, teachers, special needs assistants, SNAs, and everyone else who works in a school community are heroes. They are often undervalued, the first to be criticised and face a great deal of negativity, but what they do for children of all backgrounds every day of the week is inspirational. If one ever wants to be uplifted in one's political work, then take a trip to the local school to get cheered up.

Regarding expertise, teachers and principals have told me that properly assessing the needs of a child is the role of an educational psychologist. A teacher or principal does not have the expertise, or should not be expected to have the expertise, to assess the motor skills of a child. The Minister of State was about to address this point.

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