John Connolly (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister's comments on closing the gap between DEIS and non-DEIS schools are interesting because in a number of our schools, the teaching personnel observe a level of disadvantage among pupils that is probably not recognised under the scheme. This is even in terms of how the existing scheme is calculated, for lack of a better term, or how schools are assessed for their inclusion. One aspect schools are finding increasingly puzzling is where there is a high proportion of pupils who may be residing in international protection accommodation services, yet the school is not considered to be of sufficient disadvantage to obtain DEIS status. This is one measure we could look at. We need to review whether we are fully incorporating and analysing the number of pupils living in direct provision and attending schools, and whether that is fully recognised in the existing DEIS scheme.

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