Results 17,421-17,440 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Labour Court Recommendations (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I can confirm that no sanction was ever sought or received from my Department for the payment of Labour Court Recommendation LCR18901 while the complex which employed these staff was open. The staff concerned were not public servants, nor was the State ever the Employer of these staff. Concession of the labour court recommendation could potentially have significant cost implications for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Services Provision (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 108 and 122 together. I wish to advise the Deputy that differing teacher allocation ratios are applied under the General Allocation Model (GAM) in relation to boys, girls and mixed schools in order to account for differentials of prevalence of learning difficulty between boys and girls. The objective of this differentiation is to ensure that resources...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Applications (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Officials in my Department have been informed by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI) that the letter issued cancelling the application of the student referred to by the Deputy was sent in error. The Deputy will appreciate that some errors may inevitably arise when handling a high volume of applications within a relatively short timeframe. SUSI has confirmed that on review the grant...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Disadvantaged Status (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The following table shows a list of all girl primary schools with the total number of pupils, mainstream class teachers and DEIS status in the 2012/13 school year. Publication of all data at first level and a final list of schools and their enrolments for 2013/14 will be on my Department's website by the end of the school year Roll No. Official School Name Address Line 1 Address Line 2...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: A new dedicated continuing professional development (CPD) service for schools - Junior Cycle for Teachers (JCT) was established in 2013. JCT commenced the roll-out of CPD events for both school leaders and teachers in November 2013. A range of resources and supports will also be made available online. A variety of CPD delivery methods will be employed including in-school CPD, some of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 112 and 113 together. The new Junior Cycle is based on the advice provided by the National Council for Curriculum Assessment which, in turn, was based on a range of research carried out for it. The NCCA documentation on junior cycle development was in part based, among other sources, on the commissioned research reports from the ESRI's longitudinal study...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The object of the NCCA, as set out in section 41 (1) (a) and (b) of the Education Act 1998, is to advise me on matters relating to the curriculum for early childhood education, primary and post-primary schools, and the assessment procedures employed in schools and examinations on subjects that are part of the curriculum. It is the Department's role to oversee the implementation of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The new Junior Cycle is based on the advice provided by the National Council for Curriculum Assessment which, in turn, was based on a range of research carried out for it. The NCCA documentation on junior cycle development was in part based, among other sources, on the following sources. It was based on the commissioned research reports from the ESRI's longitudinal study of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Book Rental Scheme (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The Department will continue to provide a book grant as usual to all primary schools. This grant, can be utilised for the purposes of updating or expanding a school's existing book rental scheme. I want to commend all schools that have used it to help build up book rental schemes over the years and I am aware of the difficulties faced by schools in relation to these schemes. Their efforts...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Agencies Staff Remuneration (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The questions posed in this PQ allow for two separate matters to come under consideration and I will deal with each in turn. Firstly, it is a feature of public service employment that sanctioned allowances may be payable for the carrying out of additional duties and/or for the carrying out of duties or functions of a higher level. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform undertook a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Applications (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: My Department is in receipt of documentation regarding the provision of a link building extension at the College referred to by the Deputy. Such capital resources as are available to my Department must be prioritised to deliver school places. This is the conclusion that the Government came to in deciding on the capital envelope to be made available to the Department for the years 2012 to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards Issues (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The facility referred to by the Deputy is in the ownership of Dublin and Dun Laoghaire Education & Training Board (DDLETB). The ETB has advised my Department that it has had ongoing discussions with Fingal County Council on the possibility of reinstating the pitch to the most risk averse level in the context of future flooding event(s). The ETB has recently agreed with the Council a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Services Provision (4 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy that a significant number of sections of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act have been commenced, principally those establishing the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) and those promoting an inclusive approach to the education of children with special educational needs. In light of the very difficult economic situation...

Government's Priorities for the Year Ahead: Statements (Resumed) (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Do the communities in which they are located have access to broadband?

Government's Priorities for the Year Ahead: Statements (Resumed) (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to share time with the Minister of State, Deputy Tom Hayes. I am pleased to have the opportunity to participate in this debate on the Government's priorities for the year ahead. I acknowledge and welcome the presence in the Chamber of the Sinn Féin parliamentary spokesperson on education and skills. When we entered government, I spoke about how Fianna Fáil had lost...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The day-to-day operation of the apprenticeship system is the responsibility of SOLAS. SOLAS has put several measures in place to assist redundant apprentices to complete their apprenticeship where necessary. Redundant apprentices may avail of existing skills training courses which enhance their skills. They may also avail of the range of night courses which are available in Training...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Services Provision (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy 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 including resource teaching and Special Needs Assistant (SNA) support as well as the establishment of special...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments Data (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The number of pupils enrolled in primary schools in the Balbriggan feeder area for the 2012-2013 school year was 3,789. Results from the Census for the current school year (2013/2014) are being finalised at present. Projections for the 2014-2015 school year indicate a requirement for some 3,780 primary school places, which is in line with the 2012-13 enrolment. My Department is currently...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Summer Works Scheme Applications (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I can confirm to the Deputy that the school referred to has submitted an application for the works in question under the Summer Works Scheme. I wish to advise the Deputy that commensurate with the level of funding available for the Summer Works Scheme, applications are currently being assessed on a top down basis in accordance with the prioritisation criteria outlined in the governing...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: FÁS Local Training Initiatives Review (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: This is an operational matter for SOLAS. I understand that in 2013 a review process was put in place to enable Local Training Initiatives (LTIs) to be reviewed individually on the basis of an agreed national template. The LTI review process provides a mechanism for SOLAS and the Education & Training Boards (ETBs) to engage with LTI Providers in a structured manner to review...