Results 14,461-14,480 of 19,666 for speaker:Norma Foley

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Enrolments (30 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: I appreciate that the Deputy has highlighted a very important issue. We need to reiterate that no parent can be charged for enrolment to a school or for tuition in any subject. Section 64 of the Act makes that explicitly clear. This school has said it never intended for any link to be made between enrolment and the paying of a fee. The school has categorically confirmed that it does not...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Enrolments (30 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: I reiterate that I am very pleased the Deputy has raised this issue. It is important to state, for the record, that section 64 of the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018 makes clear that no fee can be charged for enrolment or instruction in any subject, recreation or other activities where all pupils are expected to participate. That is very clear. In this instance, the school has...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Enrolments (30 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: Under the Education Act 1998, the question of enrolment policy in individual schools, including the setting of catchment areas, is the responsibility of the board of management on behalf of the school patron. The selection process, and the enrolment policy on which it is based, must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants. However, this may result in...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Enrolments (30 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: For clarity, the Department of Education does not set out any catchment areas and we have no function in setting out catchment areas for schools. That is the preserve of the boards of management and the Department of Education has no function there. For the school referenced by the Deputy, it is my understanding that there is no catchment area designed by the board of management. Schools...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Enrolments (30 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: To be fair, our geographical information system, which is based on current information from the CSO or engagement with local authorities, very much informs our projections going forward in terms of the needs in a specific area. I have already outlined that we are conscious of the growing demands.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Enrolments (30 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: Boards of management have the autonomy to develop their own unique and individual criteria. No two schools are the same and we are very conscious of that. Individual schools have the autonomy, taking on board what are the individual circumstances in an individual area at any given time, to make their policies with regard to admission. As I said, the Department has no role in developing...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: I know the committee will join with me in extending our sympathy and support to the children and their carer impacted by the horrific violence on Thursday last in an area in proximity to a school in Parnell Square, Dublin. In particular, we are thinking of the young child and her carer who remain in hospital. I thank the Cathaoirleach and members of the committee for their personal...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: We have a cohort of more than 1 million students. We have an increased number of students who are coming from abroad, for example. To mention Ukraine alone, there are more than 17,700 students from there. The Deputy will know that students who come from another area, by virtue of their age, can often be exempted from the Irish language. Because there is a more multicultural or diverse...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: There is an element of choice with those other subjects. Students have the opportunity to choose whether they will pursue another language whether it is French, German or Spanish or whatever might be available in a school. It is very hard to draw a comparison there because that is a strong distinction. Notwithstanding that, the Department is very conscious of the importance and the primacy...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: I fully accept the Deputy’s passion. I want to acknowledge the work of Conradh na Gaelige and other organisations.

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: There is a suite of organisations doing great work on this area and have been very engaged with the Department. I fundamentally agree with the Deputy that the more languages a student is given the opportunity to experience, statistics show they can perform very strongly from a linguistic perspective. That is the chief motivation behind bringing in a variety of modern foreign languages at...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: We are doing this now and I know people would have different views initially as to the benefits and the impacts on the Irish language. In fact, studies show us that where students can master one language, they can master a second one. We are moving ahead with that and this ability to introduce modern foreign languages at primary school has been very positively endorsed. That involves...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: -----as we go forward.

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: Was that with regard to the inflation?

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: I thank the Deputy very much for those questions. On the school secretaries, there are more than 2,600 school secretaries on the payroll and 154 of them are individual secretaries employed by more than one school. I am just giving the Deputy that information as it is an interesting dynamic. The Department has been providing a payroll service for these school secretaries since September...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: I acknowledge my officials. They really did put in an enormous body of work to get it, in the first instance, through primary and on into post-primary level. I acknowledge that post-primary level is a very different experience from primary, with a greater number of subjects and a diversity of choice and all of that. There is a review of how the scheme worked in primary. That is very much...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: Very much so. I acknowledge that tremendous work was done on the ground by schools to make it workable, as it were. The Department did provide specific and additional funding to schools to ensure they were recompensed, if you like, for taking charge of the roll-out of the book scheme and compensated for the time and work involved in it. It has been very positively endorsed by parents and...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: Tuigim an méid sin. Is maith is cuimhin liom an cruinniú a bhí againn. Tá an Roinn ag déanamh gach iarracht áiteanna a chur ar fáil do na daltaí. I understand a very impressive meeting that was organised by the parents there. There is a genuine determination on the part of parents, the Deputy and public representatives, who are very committed. I...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: On the issue of the posts of responsibility, as part of the budget 2024 process, 1,000 additional posts of responsibility will be made available. That is a positive and a win for schools. If we believe in distributed leadership, we must provide opportunities for it. Regarding the master's in education, Building Momentum has provided a sectoral bargaining process to deal with outstanding...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 26 - Education (Supplementary) (29 Nov 2023)

Norma Foley: Schools are encouraged to reuse books. They are fantastic at doing that, and great at reusing resources. Part of the funding is being provided for this. Schools have shown great ability to do it in the past. I have no reason to doubt they will be able to do it in future. I also appreciate that teachers supplement what is happening in the textbook in a variety of ways. They will be...