Results 3,481-3,500 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin

Written Answers — School Funding: School Funding (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I am pleased to advise the Deputy that the funding in question was recently paid to the school authorities.

Written Answers — Special Savings Incentive Scheme: Special Savings Incentive Scheme (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: For the purposes of determining grant eligibility, all investments must be declared, including savings certificates, life assurance bonds and other financial instruments where the interest or profit is accumulated and paid out as a lump sum at the end of the investment period. The amount of income to be included in respect of special savings incentive accounts, SSIAs, is the Government grant...

Written Answers — Civil Service Recruitment: Civil Service Recruitment (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: On foot of a Government decision, the then Minister for Education and Science formally established the State Examinations Commission on 6 March 2003. The commission now has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations. This includes the matter raised by the Deputy. I have forwarded his question to the State Examinations Commission for direct reply.

Written Answers — Pre-School Education: Pre-School Education (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I confirm for the Deputy that my Department has received an application from the service provider in question for funding towards the operation of its service. The proposal concerns the provision of educational services for a number of pre-school age pupils attending the service, including the child referred to by the Deputy. The proposal is under consideration in my Department and further...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 469 and 470 together. As the Deputy is aware, my Department announced the new general allocation system last May with a view to it being implemented in all primary schools with effect from the start of the current school year. The general allocation scheme is designed to ensure that each school has enough resource teaching hours to meet the needs of children...

Written Answers — Teaching Qualifications: Teaching Qualifications (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: There are 402 teachers with restricted recognition currently working in primary schools. My Department does not have information on the number of such teachers outside primary schools. Restricted recognition gives eligibility to teach in certain categories of special schools and in categories of special classes in mainstream schools where Irish is not a curricular requirement. Teachers with...

Written Answers — School Funding: School Funding (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The level of funding that my Department provides to Educate Together schools is on a par with that provided to other primary schools. However, following discussions with Educate Together my Department has provided additional funding in 2005 to meet the immediate issues of concern to that body. The matter of the future funding to be provided to the primary management bodies, including Educate...

Written Answers — School Services Staff: School Services Staff (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 473 and 474 together. My Department provides funding towards the cost of secretarial and caretaking services in primary schools under two separate schemes. One scheme is the 1978-1979 scheme for the employment of full-time secretaries and caretakers in primary schools under which my Department meets the full cost of salary. This scheme is being phased out as...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 475 to 478, inclusive, 480 and 481 together. As the Deputy is aware, my Department announced the new general allocation system last May with a view to it being implemented in all primary schools with effect from the start of the current school year. The general allocation scheme is designed to ensure that each school has enough resource teaching hours to meet...

Written Answers — Telecommunications Services: Telecommunications Services (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: As the Deputy will no doubt be aware, my Department is currently engaged in a process to provide broadband Internet connectivity to all recognised first and second level schools with security, content filtering and other services routed through a national broadband network for schools. The scheme will receive industry support through an agreement with the Telecommunications and Internet...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The National Council for Special Education, NCSE, has been established as an independent statutory body with responsibilities as set out in the National Council for Special Education (Establishment) Order 2003. Since 1 January 2005, the NCSE through local special educational needs organisers, SENOs, is responsible for processing resource applications for children with special educational...

Written Answers — Modern Language Teaching: Modern Language Teaching (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: At the request of my Department, the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, NCCA, has carried out a feasibility study on the teaching of modern languages in the primary curriculum. The report, completed last year, recommended that any decision on the place of modern languages in the primary curriculum should be deferred until the revised primary curriculum has been implemented in...

Written Answers — School Accommodation: School Accommodation (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I am conscious of the fact that Lucan is one of the fastest growing areas in the country. In light of this, my Department has expanded capacity significantly at both primary and post-primary level to cater for existing and newly emerging demands for pupil places. With regard to post-primary capacity specifically, a new school for Coláiste Cois Life is currently under construction. This will...

Written Answers — School Completion Programme: School Completion Programme (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The home-school-community liaison scheme is one of my Department's main programmes for promoting educational inclusion. Home-school-community liaison services will have a central role in the new action plan for educational inclusion, DEIS, or delivering equality of opportunity in schools, which I launched on 30 May. The new action plan, which will be introduced on a phased basis, starting...

Written Answers — School Accommodation: School Accommodation (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: My Department has examined the long term accommodation needs of St. Finian's National School in Newcastle and has determined that additional provision will be required to meet demand emanating from current and planned housing developments in the area. The matter of how best this additional accommodation should be provided, having regard to existing accommodation and the alternative options...

Written Answers — School Accommodation: School Accommodation (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: Prior to 2002 there were eight primary school providers in the Lucan area. In recognition of the developing nature of Lucan, my Department subsequently recognised three new primary new schools to cater for the growing demand for pupil places: an Educate Together school, a Catholic primary school under a reconfiguration process and a Gaelscoil. During the period in question, three new 16...

Written Answers — Speed Limits: Speed Limits (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The issue of speed control measures are outside the vested site area of Ballaghlea National School, Ballygar, County Galway and are not a matter over which my Department has any control. The school authorities may liaise with the local authority on the issues outlined by the Deputy.

Written Answers — Third Level Fees: Third Level Fees (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The criteria for eligibility under the free fees initiative includes the provision that tuition fees will not be paid in respect of students undertaking repeat years or in respect of students repeating a year-level having changed, but not completed, their undergraduate course. Tuition fees will, however, be paid in respect of students who, having attended but not completed an approved course,...

Written Answers — Higher Education Grants: Higher Education Grants (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I understand that the candidate referred to by the Deputy previously completed more than the first year of a two-year national certificate course at Athlone IT and now has commenced a three-year ordinary degree, or national diploma, in the 2005-06 academic year at DIT. Grant assistance in respect of approved higher certificate and ordinary degree courses is awarded to eligible candidates...

Written Answers — School Transport: School Transport (4 Oct 2005)

Mary Hanafin: One of the main objectives of my Department's school transport scheme is to provide a basic level of service for children who live long distances from school, and who might otherwise experience difficulty in attending regularly. As a general rule, special transport services are not established in areas where public scheduled bus services already exist. Eligible pupils in such cases are,...