Results 17,441-17,460 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Irish Language Issues (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: A breakdown of expenditure on Irish language translation, advertising and signage costs is set out in the following tables. This information has been extracted from my Department's Financial Management System and provides costs for the years in question wherever it is possible to disaggregate costs relating specifically to the Irish language from overall expenditure within these cost...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Book Rental Scheme (5 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...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teaching Qualifications (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I am aware that some newly qualified teachers may experience difficulty in accessing teaching hours to complete their probation for registration purposes because they do not yet hold a teaching position in a school. Measures have been taken by the Department and the Teaching Council to alleviate difficulties faced by teachers in this regard. One measure relates to the minimum service...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Site Acquisitions (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: As I previously advised the Deputy, my officials have been working very closely with officials from Galway City Council in relation to identifying and acquiring a suitable site for new school accommodation for the school to which he refers. I can confirm that a suitable site has been identified and the site acquisition process is at an advanced stage. Given the sensitivities associated...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Administration (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: As the Deputy will be aware, Phase 1 of this project is a devolved project. This allows individual school authorities the means to address their accommodation and building priorities with a guaranteed amount of funding and gives them day to day control of their building project. It is a central tenet of the devolved schemes that responsibility for the management of a project, including cost...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: SOLAS Administration (5 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: This is an operational matter for SOLAS. SOLAS have been requested to provide the information directly to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The Apprenticeship Review Group's comprehensive report was submitted to my Department in December 2013. The report and its recommendations, which include the establishment of an Apprenticeship Council, are being progressed through engagement between my Department with stakeholders, including relevant Government Departments, agencies and representative groups. The report suggested that the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Administration (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy will be aware that the Education Act (1998) provides for a general statutory framework for the administration of the education system at first and second level. Individual institutions in the education sector have varying degrees of autonomy according to their status and statutory provisions. The Act also provides for the right of schools to manage their own affairs in accordance...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Book Rental Scheme (6 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...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations Commission (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations. The State Examinations Commission operates a scheme of Reasonable Accommodations in the Certificate examinations, including an appeals process. Applications for such accommodations are submitted by schools on behalf of their students. Full details of the scheme...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Appeals (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Officials in my Department have confirmed that the student referred to by the Deputy has appealed the decision of the awarding authority to the Independent Student Grants Appeals Board. The appeal was received by the Board on 18th February 2014 and will be heard within the timeframe set out in the Student Support Act 2011. The student will be notified directly of the outcome of the appeal.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations Issues (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations. The State Examinations Commission operates a scheme of Reasonable Accommodations in the Certificate examinations, including an appeals process. Applications for such accommodations are submitted by schools on behalf of their students. Full details of the scheme...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Policy (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The Government is strongly committed to promoting Ireland as a centre for international education. In order to achieve this my Department has been co-ordinating the implementation of Investing in Global Relationships: Ireland's International Education Strategy which involves a collaborative approach between Government departments and agencies and the education sector. My Department will...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Early Start Programme (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: My Department's main intervention in early years education is the Early Start programme. This programme was established in the mid-1990s in 40 primary schools in designated areas of urban disadvantage in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Waterford, Galway, Drogheda and Dundalk. It is a one year intervention scheme to meet the needs of children from disadvantaged backgrounds who are at risk of not...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Evaluations (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Schools are required to engage in a process of school self-evaluation (SSE) since the launch of the SSE Guidelines. The requirements are outlined in circulars 0039/2012 (primary schools) and 0040/2012 (post-primary schools) which were published in November 2012. As part of the SSE process, schools are required to evaluate one aspect of teaching and learning and to complete their first SSE...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The NCCA is currently evaluating the responses it has received on a background paper for Junior Cycle Science in the context of the development of a new specification for Science. The new specification is due for implementation in schools from September 2015. Overall, I am in favour of schools deciding what junior cycle programme they will offer, mindful of the need to reflect the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Evaluations (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: School self-evaluation (SSE) was introduced as a mandatory requirement for primary and post-primary schools in November 2012, when the SSE Guidelines were launched. Schools are required to engage in a process of internal evaluation of three aspects of teaching and learning, including literacy and numeracy in a four-year period from 2012/13 to 2015/16. They are required to produce a school...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Literacy Levels (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Over the period since the launch of the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategy in July 2011, there has been significant progress under many of the 41 actions and almost 180 sub-actions. Some of the major developments to date are set out as follows: - Major changes have been made to initial teacher training including expanding the primary Bachelor of Education from 3 to 4 years, and the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Training Provision (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Recommendations for changes to initial teacher education and the provision of continuing professional development were included in the National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011-2020. The recommendations on initial teacher education have been incorporated into the Teaching Council's Policy Paper on the Continuum of Teacher Education and Criteria...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Literacy Levels (6 Mar 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: With effect from January 2012 and in line with the Literacy and Numeracy Strategy, all primary schools are required to spend 6.5 hours for infants with a shorter day, and 8.5 hours per week for students with a full day on the development of literacy skills, particularly in the first language of the school. At post-primary level circular 25/12 emphasises that literacy and numeracy are...