Dáil debates

Tuesday, 22 January 2013

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions

Teacher Redeployment

2:20 pm

Photo of Charlie McConalogueCharlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he has met with the Institute of Guidance Counsellors to discuss the issues that emerged from a recent survey by the IGC in particular the impact of cuts to disadvantaged schools and the reduction in one to one counselling; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2840/13]

Photo of Ruairi QuinnRuairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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I will arrange for officials of my Department to be briefed by the Institute of Guidance Counsellors on its recent survey. I have already acknowledged to the House, and previously to the Institute of Guidance Counsellors, that bringing guidance provision within quota is challenging for schools. However, the alternative was adjusting the pupil-teacher ratio, PTR, staffing allocations. All of us in the public sector have to do more with less and teachers, including those who are assigned as guidance counsellors, cannot be exempt from this requirement.

It is important to note that the provision of guidance in schools is a whole-school activity and it does not just involve the guidance counsellor. All teachers in the school have an important role including year heads and that is not captured in surveys of this type. The budget decision sheltered the impact for all DEIS post-primary schools by improving their standard staffing allocations.

2:25 pm

Photo of Charlie McConalogueCharlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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Since the Minister introduced the cut to guidance counselling services last year, the service in schools throughout the country has been decimated. That was shown clearly by the Institute of Guidance Counsellors survey last week which showed that one-to-one time with students is down 50%, or halved. It also showed that guidance services in 13% of cases are being provided by unqualified guidance teachers.

When the Minister introduced the cut, he indicated that it was about empowering schools to make their own decisions. He has also indicated on several occasions since then, when challenged on this issue, that there should be a whole-school approach to guidance. There is no doubt there should be such an approach to guidance. It is important that each teacher plays their role. However, when each teacher plays a role, what happens when the student goes to the door of the guidance counsellor and the door is closed because the counsellor is not there? Not everything can be dealt with by the ordinary teachers.

The 700 guidance counsellors in this country are qualified for what they do. The Minister has decimated a sector and profession that it took years to build. Across the country, in many cases students are unable to get access to guidance counsellors. Then the problem escalates and in many instances they must be referred to the main mental health services with bigger problems. I ask the Minister to acknowledge the impact the cut has had.

Photo of Ruairi QuinnRuairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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The decision I took last year, somewhat reluctantly, was to mainstream guidance counsellors in post-primary schools. In some cases this had no impact on the overall allocation because the size of the school was such that full-time counsellors continued in their positions. Where smaller secondary schools were involved, a decision was made by the principals about the best allocation of scarce resources to that school in terms of requiring a guidance counsellor who was also a qualified teacher to spend part of his or her time teaching a subject in the classroom as well as providing guidance. While we talk about guidance, it is fair to point out that in many respects the concern in recent years and months has been about the pastoral care dimension of the role of guidance counsellor, as distinct from traditional career guidance. That is what the Deputy is stressing.

There is the backup service of the National Educational Psychological Service, NEPS, for acute problems. Ultimately, there is a responsibility on the principal and board of management of the school to contact me or explain directly to the Department if they are unable to cope with the volume of problems they currently have. To my knowledge, I have received no communications in the Department of such concerns from principals.

Photo of Charlie McConalogueCharlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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If the Minister had taken the time to meet with the Institute of Guidance Counsellors, he might have received that feedback in the last week or so. As I pointed out, its survey shows that one-to-one time with students is down by 50%. There is a crisis among our young people at present with mental health issues. It impacts on a small percentage of students but there are far more factors and stressors involved now not only because of the economic situation, but also because of developments in recent years in social media and cyber issues.

I have often heard the Minister make the point that he allocated €500,000 to resource the new plan which he plans to publish later this week. On the other hand, however, the Minister has removed the specific allocation for the 700 qualified guidance counsellors and put it back into the schools' main budget. It is the removal of over €20 million from that particular budget. Indeed, the Minister is taking the people who are best placed to deal with the issues at the coalface in the schools out of the system, and in a way that inhibits their ability to do that work. That is the impact it has had. I ask the Minister to revisit this issue.

Photo of Ruairi QuinnRuairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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The Deputy is misrepresenting what I decided in the previous budget. I have mainstreamed guidance counsellor teachers within the overall allocation of teachers to post-primary schools.

I have entrusted the redeployment or deployment of that resource, both the subject teacher who is also a guidance teacher, to the principal or the deputy principal of the school as they see fit. That is a right and proper thing to do at a time of scarce resources. The alternative was for guidance counsellors to be considered outside the general allocation and to be confined, which would have meant that they would not be eligible to be redeployed even if there was a need for redeployment or the capacity for them to be redeployed. This was conveyed to me by a number of different principals The decision as to provide for the allocation of guidance teachers who have subject specialties to be redeployed as the principal sees fit and that is a delegation of responsibility and power, which many principals have welcomed because they previously did not have it.

Where the numbers are such that a full-time guidance counsellor is required, he or she will continue to provide that work. I will ask departmental officials to examine the survey in detail and to meet representatives of the Institute of Guidance Counsellors to explore the detail of how this happening. Let us be clear about this. We are in a position where all of us in the House and across the country are being asked to do more with less and guidance counsellors are no different in that respect from anybody else.