Results 6,281-6,300 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn

Third Level Funding (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: No and while my position on fees is well known, I do not have any prejudice in the matter. We will have to wait and see what the report proffers before we make any further decisions. No decision will be made until we have the report.

Special Educational Needs (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: The National Council for Special Education, NCSE, issued a circular to schools advising of the allocation process for the 2011-12 school year. A key feature of the scheme will be to provide for an annual allocation of special needs assistant, SNA, support to eligible schools. The NCSE asked schools to submit all applications for SNA support to it by 18 March 2011. It intends to inform...

Special Educational Needs (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I will respond first in general terms before addressing specific cases if the Deputy so wishes. The number of special needs assistants in the system, which has been capped, stands at 10,575. Through the National Council for Special Education, we are trying to move to a system where each school has an allocation of special needs assistants and each principal will have a degree of discretion...

Special Educational Needs (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I would agree with the Deputy that the last thing parents of children with special needs want is to have that situation compounded by having to go through the courts. We are trying to find a system that will work within the limited resources we have and to maximise its efficiency.

Teaching Council (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I see the Teaching Council as key to implementing my Department's strategic objectives. Much work has already been done by the council to develop education, in particular in maintaining and improving teaching standards. The Teaching Council Act includes provisions for accountability and the council's relationship with the Department. Since 2008, the council has been self-funding, raising...

Teaching Council (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I recognise the Deputy's professional experience and background in this area. Subject to confirmation, my understanding is that the Teaching Council was a professional body requested by participants in the teaching profession themselves, and that it would function similarly to other such professional bodies. It would also be self-regulating in that a registration fee would be required, and...

Teaching Council (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: Subject to confirmation, the council is self-regulating and accountable to itself. It operates within the legislation as enacted by this House but it is a self-regulatory body as I understand it.

Teaching Council (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: All teachers have representative unions and bodies open to them for membership, although every teacher is not necessarily a member of the relevant union. However, those unions are represented on the Teaching Council and if teachers have complaints, I suggest that is the way to go.

School Books (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I am aware of the concern expressed by many parents and organisations, including the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, in relation to the high cost of school books and the frequent rate of revisions made by book publishers. I intend to meet with book publishers and representatives of parents in the near future to discuss this important issue in greater detail. I will see what role my...

School Books (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I am familiar with the issue to which the Deputy has referred. Many of my party members and members of the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party have expressed concerns to me about the cost of books and the apparent marginal changes which nevertheless require a new book to be purchased. If parents have two or three children in post-primary school, the cost of such books taken together is...

School Books (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I am somewhat new to this Department, as the Deputy will be aware. My impression, which I will confirm or modify if necessary, is that the initiatives on e-learning are coming from local schools. I already quoted Meath VEC as one example and such initiatives have been seen in other places as well. We are examining the reform of the secondary level curriculum, both at junior and senior...

School Books (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I agree with the sentiments expressed by the Deputy.

Schools Building Projects (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: As the Deputy is aware, the existing school site has certain constraints in terms of size, access and the fact that there is a protected structure and associated conservation issues. My Department considered the option of constructing a new school but it has not been possible to identify a suitable site. Accordingly, my Department is now exploring the possibility of developing the school in...

Schools Building Projects (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy will be aware, as will Deputy Eric Byrne, of this site and the constraints that apply to it.

Schools Building Projects (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: There are many school sites on which there are prefabs but I have not seen many sites on which there are two-storey prefabs or where there is one prefab on top of another. As the Deputy will be aware, the problem is that the site is constricted and the school is effectively occupying the site. There is a difficulty in terms of how to build on the school site and at the same time run the...

Schools Building Projects (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: Following the Deputy's request, I will certainly take it up and I will be in communication with her.

School Staffing (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: Over half of the gaelscoileanna are under Catholic patronage and redeployment from these schools is through the relevant diocesan panels. An Foras Pátrúnachta is seeking a separate panel for gaelscoileanna under its patronage. A key issue for my Department is how best to facilitate this request in a manner that avoids the inherent inefficiencies of a separate panel for a relatively small...

School Staffing (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: There are two issues involved, the first is the current employment control framework which is part and parcel of the IMF troika deal under which we cannot hire new teachers or make permanent contracts for existing teachers temporarily employed until such time as all supernumerary teachers on panels are redeployed into classrooms where they are required. Therefore, our hands are tied. I will...

School Staffing (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: We can explore this matter further. We need to find a system whereby reserve panels comprising teachers who have become supernumerary can be integrated. We have 29 or 33 - I am unsure, as I am going by memory - panels of employment within the Roman Catholic Church ethos. We should have regional panels in Munster, Leinster or Connacht or something else that relates to reasonable travel...

State Examinations (8 Jun 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: Higher education institutions have collectively agreed to operate a bonus points scheme for higher level mathematics for a four-year trial period from 2012 to 2015, inclusive, with a review in 2014. A bonus of 25 points will be allocated to students who achieve a grade D3 or above in leaving certificate higher level mathematics. This pilot scheme has been specifically designed with the...