Results 3,981-4,000 of 8,015 for speaker:Jonathan O'Brien

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: School Patronage (9 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: I agree that people have a loyalty to their local school. Unfortunately, in some cases, students are unable to attend that local school because of section 7(3)(c) of the Equal Status Act. I noted that the Minister indicated in the media this morning that she will remove rule 68 in January. That would be a very welcome move. Obviously, divestment will not address the issue of religious...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Data (9 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: 13. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of teachers employed in the primary and post-primary sector; the number of teachers on part-time contracts; and her plans to address the pay disparity for newly qualified teachers. [43698/15]

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (9 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: 32. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills her plans to remove rule 68 from the school guidelines. [43700/15]

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (9 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: 33. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will introduce an assessment regime for allocating supports under the reasonable accommodations at the certificate examinations scheme for students sitting the leaving certificate, similar to that which exists for students sitting the junior certificate. [43699/15]

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Policy (9 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: 40. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will introduce a national strategy for hunger prevention in schools; if her Department will retain responsibility for developing, implementation and monitoring this strategy, and if a specific person within her Department will be given responsibility for the primary school age group. [43701/15]

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Recruitment (9 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: 43. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will address the continued use of the JobBridge scheme to employ teachers within schools. [43697/15]

Topical Issue Debate: Flood Prevention Measures (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: I want to pick up on the points made by Deputies Harrington and McCarthy, particularly with regard to Bandon and Skibbereen. It is a very long process and perhaps we can look to see whether it can be sped up, but every stage of the process is important in its own right and we should not just drop stages to try to speed up any particular scheme. What we do need to look at, particularly in...

Equality in Education Bill 2015: First Stage (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: I move: "That the Bill be taken in Private Members' time."

Equality in Education Bill 2015: First Stage (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: I move:That leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to repeal without exception provisions of law allowing for discrimination on religious grounds against children in admissions to school; to mandate the Minister for Education and Skills to modernise the curriculum and to provide for related matters. The Bill we introduce today seeks to repeal the provisions which allow an...

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: I presume that figure is not the full year cost but rather the cost from September to December. Next year we will have to have a full year cost. Is it fair to say the extra cost will be €12 million next year?

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: Do we receive any information from preschools on the number of children identified as having special needs?

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: We would be cribbing if the Minister did not provide the extra €6 million. The increase in the number of SNAs is welcome and it is a trend that will continue as teachers are becoming more aware of the special needs of students and identifying them earlier. While the process of identifying additional needs improves, one cannot put a figure on it. I have no issue with the subhead...

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: I would take a slightly different approach from that of the Chair. In terms of SNAs, one cannot measure the outputs in educational terms because they are not teachers and are not there to teach but to assist the individual pupils with their needs, such as helping them go to the bathroom, to get on and off buses and with extra-curricular activities such as swimming. Therefore, it is much...

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: One way to measure it would be to say if a pupil in a mainstream school did not have access to a special needs assistant would he or she be able to remain in mainstream or have to go into a special school. It is not possible to measure outputs in terms of literacy and numeracy because there are more factors than having a special needs assistance in a classroom.

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: It is very difficult to measure the educational outcomes from having an SNA in a classroom. I speak from my experience of dealing with SNAs. They are there to provide for care needs and, yes, that will allow a student to be in class more often. However, because the student is in class more often does not mean that better educational outcomes for him or her are due to the SNA. They are due...

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: It is impossible to measure that.

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: No, I am saying if they stay in a mainstream setting they have educational opportunities but those opportunities cannot be measured because every individual student must be assessed on his or her own ability. If somebody is severely dyslexic, whether he or she has access to an SNA does not change the fact that he or she is dyslexic. The education he or she receives is down to the teacher...

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: It is a combination of many factors. It is not a case that when a child enters junior infants we suddenly discover he or she needs an SNA. There are children in mainstream schools who, due to the changes in the curriculum in recent years, are only being identified with additional needs when they move from senior infants to first class. It is a progression through the school as a whole. I...

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: I have two questions on this. On the additional funding we will provide before the end of the year, we were due to split it 50-50 and yet we are now moving towards providing 80% of the funding in 2015 and 20% in January 2016. What consequences does that have for next year? The higher education institutes are stating that they are having difficulty with cashflow and that there are cashflow...

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary) (8 Dec 2015)

Jonathan O'Brien: That does not solve the long-term problem.