Results 6,521-6,540 of 19,576 for speaker:Norma Foley

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate 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 Staff (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: A range of measures are in place to provide enhanced substitute cover in the context of current challenges. These include a major expansion of the primary substitute teacher supply panels, which now employ almost 380 teachers and provide substitute cover to over 2,500 primary schools across the country. A review of the supply panels has taken place and approximately 100 additional teachers...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate 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 Admissions (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department is aware of increasing pressures and demand for additional post-primary school places in a number of school planning areas including school planning areas in Malahide and Portmarnock, County Dublin. Where enrolment pressures arise, it may not be as a result of lack of accommodation but may be driven by the following factors: - Duplication...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: School secretaries are valued members of our school communities and my Department is fully aware of the vitally important role played by them in the running of our schools. The majority of primary and voluntary secondary schools receive assistance to provide for secretarial, caretaking and cleaning services under grant schemes. Where a school employs a staff member to support those...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the 2020/21 school year over 114,100 children, including over 14,700 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 €224.7m in 2020. Planning for school...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 356 and 357 together. The Department of Health and the HSE, working in collaboration with the Department of Education has recently announced a programme in which antigen tests will be made available to children in a primary school pod, where a child in the pod is a confirmed case of COVID-19. The tests will be sent to the children’s parents, and the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Facilities (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The project to which the Deputy refers has been devolved for delivery to the Board of Management of the school. The Service Level Agreement (SLA) has been issued to the Board of Management. The Board is currently in the process of procuring a Design Team for the project. Thereafter, it will ensure that the project progresses to design stage, obtains the necessary statutory planning...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Under Languages Connect, Ireland’s Strategy for Foreign Languages in Education 2017 – 2026, the Department introduced four new languages to the Leaving Certificate curriculum in September 2020: Lithuanian, Mandarin Chinese, Polish and Portuguese. These will be examined for the first time in summer 2022. Post Primary Languages Ireland (PPLI) have been charged by the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teaching Council of Ireland (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Under the Teaching Council Acts 2001-2015 the Teaching Council is the body with statutory authority and responsibility for the regulation of the teaching profession in Ireland including the registration of teachers in the State. The Teaching Council inform me that the application of the person referred to by the Deputy is in the final stages of processing and they expect the applicant's...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Under Project Ireland 2040, the education sector will receive a total of approximately €4.4 billion capital investment over the period 2021-2025. This significant investment allows us to move forward with certainty on our ambitious plans and deliver high quality building projects, with a real focus on sustainability, for school communities across Ireland. This investment will build on...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Under Project Ireland 2040, the education sector will receive a total of approximately €4.4 billion capital investment over the period 2021-2025. This significant investment allows us to move forward with certainty on our ambitious plans and deliver high quality building projects, with a real focus on sustainability, for school communities across Ireland. This investment will build on...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate 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: National Development Plan (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The NDP provides capital funding of over €4.4bn for investment in school infrastructure during the period 2021 to 2025. A 10 year allocation for the period 2021 to 2030 was not provided for individual Departments under the revised NDP. There will be a rolling 5 year funding envelope which will be updated annually for the period 2026 to 2030 within the Government’s overall NDP...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 367, 369 and 370 together. The Department of Health and the HSE, working in collaboration with the Department of Education has announced a programme in which antigen tests will be made available to children in a primary school pod, where a child in the pod is a confirmed case of COVID-19. The tests will be sent to the children’s parents by the HSE....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Equipment (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 371 and 372 together. Managing ventilation is just one of a suite of public health measures in place to keep our schools safe. Updated guidance for schools on Practical Steps for the Deployment of Good Ventilation Practices in Schools was provided at the end of May following the work of an expert group that carefully considered the role of ventilation in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Leaving Certificate Computer Science has been available nationally as an optional subject since September 2020. As was outlined in the publication 'Returning to school - Guidance on learning and school programmes for post-primary school leaders and teachers', published on www.gov.ie/backtoschool, schools that had earlier indicated they wished to introduce this subject from September 2020 were...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Driver Licences (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the 2020/2021 school year over 114,100 children, including over 14,700 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 €224.7m in 2020. The purpose of my...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Officials in my Department continue to liaise with officials in Cork City Council in relation to the identification and acquisition of suitable sites for the school in question. A number of site options were identified. Each of these were investigated by my Department in conjunction with officials from Cork City Council. Unfortunately, in the case of all options identified, either the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (23 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Having worked for many years in the classroom I appreciate that exam time, most notably the Leaving Certificate, can be a stressful time for students, and of course the pandemic has created additional challenges. The decisions taken by Government about Leaving Certificate 2021, in the context of the impact on teaching and learning of the Covid-19 pandemic, were taken with the best interests...