Results 9,541-9,560 of 19,601 for speaker:Norma Foley

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 121,400 children, including over 15,500 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €289m in 2021. The purpose of my Department's...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the last school year over 121,400 children, including over 15,500 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €289m in 2021. In July 2022, Government...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the last school year over 121,400 children, including over 15,500 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €289m in 2021. In July 2022, Government...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of my Department. In the past school year over 121,400 children, including over 15,500 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €289m in 2021. The children referred to by the Deputy have...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the last school year over 121,400 children, including over 15,500 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €289m in 2021. In July 2022, Government announced...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the last school year over 121,400 children, including over 15,500 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €289m in 2021. In July 2022, Government...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the state examinations. In view of this I have forwarded your query to the State Examinations Commission for direct reply to you.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of my Department. In the past school year over 121,400 children, including over 15,500 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €289m in 2021. My Department and Bus Éireann will continue...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Education Issues: Engagement with the Minister for Education (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: I want to thank the committee for inviting me to attend. As we meet here I am deeply conscious, as I know the committee members are, of the recent terrible tragedy in Donegal. Words cannot describe the immensity of the loss that has been felt, and will continue to be felt, by the community of Creeslough and by all those who have lost a family member or a loved one. These are incredibly...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Education Issues: Engagement with the Minister for Education (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: With regard to the junior cycle, it should be noted that we had two sittings of the leaving certificate this year. That was important and the right thing to do. We also had to provide students with an opportunity to appeal results where they wished to do so, as we do every year. As a result of a landmark legal ruling some years ago, the traditional format whereby junior cycle results were...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Education Issues: Engagement with the Minister for Education (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: I thank the Deputy. As he will be aware, an almost entirely new junior cycle curriculum has been made available. Only recently, the entire cohort of subjects at junior cycle level was provided for. There is a body of work to be done in reviewing how the junior cycle is working. That review is ongoing. We will await its outcome.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Education Issues: Engagement with the Minister for Education (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: The Deputy is suggesting introducing specialist teachers at primary school level.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Education Issues: Engagement with the Minister for Education (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: The Deputy is quite correct to acknowledge the great richness provided for in our primary schools and the excellence of the staff providing education. The policy statement on initial teacher training will be published before the end of the year. We are consistently looking at ways to continue to support teachers in delivery. The Deputy made specific reference to languages and how best to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Education Issues: Engagement with the Minister for Education (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: I congratulate those in the primary school system who offer a great diversity of expertise across a wide variety of areas.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Education Issues: Engagement with the Minister for Education (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: Some initial teacher education programmes facilitate that type of approach. I acknowledge that. I also acknowledge the benefit of practical experience in the classroom, which I know from my own experience. We have seen the manner in which students have come on board with us, particularly during the Covid pandemic. I further acknowledge our summer provision programme, in the delivery of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Education Issues: Engagement with the Minister for Education (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: We have run significant and successful campaigns every year to promote teaching as a preferred career. In fact, we have seen year-on-year increases in the number of applicants via the Central Applications Office, CAO, and that is a positive. At post-primary level, there has been an increase of almost 17%, with an increase of just short of 10% across the board. I do not have any control...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Education Issues: Engagement with the Minister for Education (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: I do not have the breakdown of that. It is a rounded number of 3,400. I can get the figure for the Deputy.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Education Issues: Engagement with the Minister for Education (12 Oct 2022)

Norma Foley: I will have to check that for the Deputy. They are specialised questions. Of the 3,400 we have available, in light of the increased uptake we see year on year via the CAO, we are satisfied that we have sufficiency. Furthermore, the Deputy will be aware that for primary schools, the demographics are falling year on year. As for influence over the private sector, that is the same as the...