Results 8,481-8,500 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn

Seanad: Education (Amendment) Bill 2012: Second Stage (25 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: It may have been done but it is not regarded as very good practice. I have already dealt with the High Court case and the advice of the Office of the Attorney General. I have a note on redeployment, which states: We already have an agreed redeployment scheme at second level which worked well in 2011. A previous version of the second level redeployment scheme was the subject of a High Court...

Seanad: Education (Amendment) Bill 2012: Second Stage (25 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: However, if it is accelerating something that will happen in any case, why not-----

Seanad: Education (Amendment) Bill 2012: Second Stage (25 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: They will decide. When a school loses a teacher, the school does not necessarily close. The teacher does not lose his or her job, and this is why we had the debate on deployment. We need, however, to ascertain how we can achieve the delivery of a quality primary education system in parts of the country where the populations have changed, for reasons we all understand. We must determine...

Seanad: Education (Amendment) Bill 2012: Second Stage (25 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: It does. If one is trying to deliver equality of educational outcomes, ranging from a school with two teachers teaching six pupils each to one-----

Seanad: Education (Amendment) Bill 2012: Second Stage (25 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: That is what we have at present; that is the threshold. It is 12 for the second teacher. Consider the spectrum beginning with a primary school of that scale and ending with one such as the one I opened recently just outside Naas, which has 700 pupils, including young pre-school, crèche and special needs children. Trying to deliver the same curriculum to the latter school, with its...

Written Answers — Schools Amalgamation: Schools Amalgamation (26 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Following clarification secured from the Deputy's office, I can confirm that a major capital works application was submitted to my Department in respect of a new school for the proposed amalgamation of two schools in the area to which he refers. The application was assessed in accordance with the published prioritisation criteria for large scale projects and assigned a band 1 rating. The...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (26 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I can confirm that the school referred to by the Deputy has made an application to my Department for large scale capital funding. The application has been assessed in accordance with the published prioritisation criteria and the appropriate band rating has been assigned. The current status of all projects on the school building programme, including the school referred to by the Deputy, may...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (26 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The new simplified approach to the General Allocation Model of support for schools will make it easier to automatically update it annually in line with the changes in the number of classroom teachers in each school. Schools will also have autonomy on how to deploy the resource between language support and learning support depending on their specific needs. The arrangements for the staffing...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (26 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), is responsible for processing applications from primary and post primary schools for special educational needs supports. This includes the allocation of resource teaching hours to schools as well as the establishment of special classes in...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (26 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy will be aware that a number of sections of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act have already been commenced. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) made recommendations which suggested that additional investment over a period of years of up to €235 million per annum, across the education and health sectors, would be required to fully...

Written Answers — Pupil-Teacher Ratio: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (26 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Along with my colleagues in Government, I recognise the importance of ensuring students from a Protestant background can attend a school that reflects their denominational ethos. At a time of great strain in our public finances, however, we have to ensure the valuable but limited resources available for the education system are used in the best way possible. The staffing schedule at primary...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (26 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The announcement I made on 11 January in relation to my Department reporting to me within four weeks refers only to the impact of the withdrawal of certain posts allocated under previous disadvantaged schemes in DEIS Band 1 and Band 2 primary schools. The school to which the Deputy refers is not included as part of this report as the school in question is not included in the DEIS programme...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (26 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to schools is published annually on my Department's website. The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the previous 30 September. The relevant appointment and retention figures for mainstream staffing for the...

Private Members' Business. Small Primary Schools: Motion (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Is that not a fact?

Private Members' Business. Small Primary Schools: Motion (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: So does Deputy Ó Cuív. He need not throw "rural Ireland" at me. Deputy Ó Cuív was born and educated in Dublin 4.

Private Members' Business. Small Primary Schools: Motion (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Deputy McConalogue has let the cat out of the bag.

Private Members' Business. Small Primary Schools: Motion (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: No, the Deputy did.

Private Members' Business. Small Primary Schools: Motion (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I move amendment No. 1: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "— recognises that: — at a time of great strain on our public finances, we have to ensure that the very valuable, but limited resources available to the education system are used in the best way possible; and — public services, including schools, must continue to be an important part of the...

Private Members' Business. Small Primary Schools: Motion (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I know the Deputies opposite do not like the facts.

Private Members' Business. Small Primary Schools: Motion (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: We would not be debating this or other cuts in public expenditure if the Fianna Fáil Party had lived up to its responsibilities in government. Years of profligate, irresponsible spending funded through debt and borrowing were matched by economic policies which cost the economy its competitiveness and reputation as a good place to do business. In 1997, when the coalition left government,...