Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for Education and Skills for coming to the House to respond to my issue in person. I wish to raise the issue of recognition for Montessori teachers to teach in special education primary schools and in special education across the country. There is currently one school, St. Nicholas Montessori College Ireland, which carries out a level 8 qualification for teachers over four years to become qualified Montessori teachers. Until now, graduates from this level 8 course have been in a position to teach special classes in primary schools and students with special educational needs and have been able to take up positions in special education schools, of which there are some 150 across the country. In the consultation currently being carried out by the teaching council to review the regulations in accordance with the 2001 and 2012 Teaching Council Acts, I understand there is a proposal to remove regulation 3, under which those graduates of St. Nicholas Montessori College Ireland currently get restricted registration to enable them to teach in primary schools and special education schools.

Will the Minister update the House on the current position with regard to the Teaching Council's proposals to change this regulation? Will the Minister confirm whether the students who are due to start the course with Saint Nicholas Montessori College Ireland this coming September will have the same recognition as previous graduates when they graduate in 2019?

In light of the Minister's recent announcement of an early years education advisory group, which has been asked to look at the development of possible qualification structures in the early years sector and is now carrying out that work, will she await the outcome of its report before deciding to remove the current recognition graduates of the Montessori college enjoy? I know the Minister has a particular affinity with this sector, having worked in it in the past, and that she knows it very well. I look forward to her response.

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I thank Deputy McConalogue for raising this issue. I am aware of the concerns of Saint Nicholas Montessori College Ireland about the recognition of its teacher education programmes. As the House will be aware, the Teaching Council is the independent statutory regulator for the teaching profession. The council sets standards for all elements of the continuum of teacher education including initial teacher education programmes, induction and continuous professional development.

The Teaching Council's regulations for the registration of teachers were first published in 2009 and set out the standards teachers must meet if they wish to be registered members of the profession in Ireland. Teachers recognised under regulation 3 are eligible for employment in restricted school settings, that is, in certain categories of special schools and in certain classes in mainstream schools where Irish is not a curricular requirement. The council has been engaged in a review of the regulations for some time. The review has been necessitated by the extension and reconceptualisation of all programmes of initial teacher education. New regulations will be also necessary in light of the Bill to amend the Teaching Council Acts that is currently completing its passage through the Houses of the Oireachtas.

The developments are part of a significant programme of reform of teacher education in which the council has been engaged in recent years, informed in part by my Department's literacy and numeracy strategy of 2011. It is important to remember that the primary focus of the reform programme is to enhance the quality of the teaching and learning experience for all children and young people. In any discussions we have about teaching and learning, including inclusive education, the learner must be the focus.

As the statutory professional standards body for teaching in Ireland, the Teaching Council is of the view that all teachers should be first and foremost qualified and registered as teachers in their given sector, whether primary or post-primary, before they specialise in particular areas of teaching and learning. Special education needs is now mandatory in all programmes of initial teacher education under the council's criteria and guidelines so the landscape has evolved significantly since regulation 3 was put in place.

That said, the council itself acknowledges that no one phase of teachers' learning will be sufficient to address all the needs of the pupils they will teach throughout their careers. The very concepts of continuous professional development and the draft national framework for teachers' learning, Cosán, bear out that. Specialist provision will continue to have its place in teachers' learning. Once teachers are fully qualified and registered, it is hoped they will continue to have a keen interest in finding quality programmes that will enable and empower them to adapt their practice to the needs of children in their care.

The council has consulted with a number of stakeholders, including Saint Nicholas Montessori College Ireland. Following consultation, the council has revised its draft regulations to provide that students who commence the programme, which is one of the questions Deputy McConalogue asked, on or before 1 September 2015 and who complete it no later than 1 September 2020 will be able to register with the council. This will give the college ample lead-in time, in addition to that which they have already, to develop a programme at post-graduate level which would meet the requirements of the council. In this scenario, future graduates of Saint Nicholas Montessori College Ireland would be registered teachers who would have specialised in special education needs and would therefore have access to the same employment opportunities as other registered teachers.

Recent changes in the teacher education landscape have been designed to ensure that inclusive education, incorporating the education of learners with special education needs, is given the appropriate professional space and time. In summary, the advice of the council that regulation 3 is no longer required has been accepted.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister and welcome the clarification for the cohort of students beginning the four year course this September that they will be eligible to apply to the Teaching Council for registration and to teach in special education settings in primary schools and in specialist special needs schools. However, the fact that the Teaching Council will no longer recognise this four year course will be a source of real regret and disappointment to many people who very much value the option of a level 8 course in Montessori teaching. They value the option of being able to specialise in Montessori teaching from the outset of their third level career given its particular value from a pedagogical point of view in special needs teaching.

Will the move away from this recognition reduce the employment capacity of those who have already graduated from the level 8 course? Will those graduates continue to be able to attract and win employment in special educational settings in the same way as they did before, as new graduates of the course will no longer be able to avail of registration from the Teaching Council?

The Minister did not refer in her reply to the work of the early years education advisory group which is carrying out an important overview of the development of the early years sector and trying to ensure there is a professionalisation of the workforce at early years level over the coming period. It would be appropriate for the Minister to consider any approach by the Teaching Council on qualifications of current graduates of Montessori degrees in light of the work of that advisory group. Will the Minister await the outcome of that advisory group's report before pursuing any change to regulation 3?

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I did not refer to that particular issue in my earlier response. I expect the early years education advisory group to have an initial report back to me before the end of the year and I intend to meet it in the autumn. The group has started having meetings and looking at some of the issues. However, the group is focusing primarily on the early years rather than school age sector. It is clear the Montessori method of learning is very much a feature of early years education in Ireland currently and I am sure it will continue to be a feature into the future. I intend to engage with the advisory group on that matter. Having the extra year, whereby people starting the course this year will be still able to register, gives some time for a full discussion and I intend to meet representatives of the Montessori method and the Teaching Council in the near future.

The Teaching Council is an independent statutory body and one of its roles is to advise on standards, qualifications, educational programmes and professional development of teachers. Its advice has to be taken seriously. There is also a lot of respect in Ireland and in other parts of the world for the Montessori method generally but it features primarily in Ireland in the preschool area rather than the primary and post-primary sector. However, it has been a feature in special schools and special classes. There is a period of time before a change in respect of regulation 3 will be in place, during which time there will be the opportunity to engage further with the Teaching Council and with the Montessori association.