Results 6,901-6,920 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Payments (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: As the Deputy may be aware, all new applications for the 2012/13 academic year are being processed and paid by SUSI, the new centralised grant awarding authority. Continuing students who are renewing their grant for attendance on an existing course with their existing awarding authority, which will be either a local authority or a VEC, will continue to have their applications processed and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Delays (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Officials from my Department have been meeting with the SUSI management team on a monthly basis since the start of the year and more recently are meeting on a weekly basis. The processing of student grants by SUSI is being closely monitored and kept under continuous review by my Department. All additional staffing requests by SUSI have been sanctioned.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The school to which the Deputy refers has recently gone to tender. Assuming that no issues arise, it is anticipated that construction will commence in the second quarter of 2013.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: In the new Junior Cycle all students will be expected to achieve 24 statements of learning over the period of their Junior Cycle. These include valuing local and national heritage and understanding the importance of the relationship between past and current event and the forces that drive change and understanding the origins and impacts of social, economic and environmental aspects of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Skills Shortages (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The joint Government-Industry Action Plan, which I launched in January this year, was developed as a direct response to specific skills shortages in the ICT sector. The Plan outlines a range of short, medium and long term measures to develop a sustainable domestic supply of high quality ICT graduates to support the further expansion and development of ICT sector and support innovation and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Higher Education Access (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The primary motivation for the Government in taking very difficult budgetary decisions is to retrieve our economic sovereignty and put the economy on a road to recovery. In closing the gap between revenue and spending, unpalatable savings measures are necessary and savings for student supports were inevitable as part of that. Given the growth in demand for participation in third level, the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Loans and Fees (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: My Department, with support and advice from the National Treasury Management Agency, met with a number of commercial providers in relation to the provision of credit to enable postgraduate students to pursue their studies. A loan system is now in place for such students by Bank of Ireland which is more flexible and affordable than standard unsecured personal loans as the repayment schedule...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Retention Rates (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: My Department's recently published Report on Retention Rates of Pupils in Second Level Schools, which shows the highest number of students ever completing second level education, is a welcome development. It does, of course, place pressure on our teacher numbers at a time of increasing enrolments. At this point I do not propose to give any specific commitment on the current levels of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: My Department calculates the staffing and grant allocations for primary and post primary schools on the basis of the total number of 'recognised' pupils enrolled in the school on 30 September of the previous year. The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to schools is published annually on my Department's website. In accordance with Circular 0057/2011, pupils in post primary schools...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Physical Education (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Physical education (P.E.) is already included in the curriculum at primary level and it also forms part of the Junior Certificate at post primary level. At primary level, the P.E. curriculum includes six broad strands featuring Athletics, Dance, Gymnastics, Games, Outdoor and adventure activities and Aquatics. A minimum of one hour of P.E. per week is recommended for all primary school...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Recruitment (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I agree with the Deputy about the challenges faced with rapidly increasing enrolments in our schools. This is why certain budgetary measures regarding teacher allocations have been introduced and further measures will be required in future years in order to manage teacher payroll costs. Teaching resources are allocated to schools on a school year basis. Unlike most other areas of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Higher Education Access (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Monitoring of access and participation in higher education is ongoing by the Higher Education Authority (HEA) as part of work on the current National Access Plan (2008-2013). Every year, 'Equal Access' data on the socio-economic background of entrants to higher education is gathered by each higher education institution as part of the student registration process. The HEA are also...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy that this Government is committed to the provision of resources for children with special educational needs. The Programme for Government sets out that education will be a priority for this Government and that we will endeavour to protect and enhance the educational experience of children, young people and students. Approximately 15% of the entire budget of my...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), for processing applications from schools for special educational needs supports, including Special Needs Assistant (SNA) support. The NCSE operates within my Department's established criteria for the allocation of such...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Contracts (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: School building projects are tendered in line with public procurement procedures. There are two methods of tendering (the Restricted procedure and the Open procedure). In both procedures there are minimum standards for participation (including previous experience, turnover, insurances, capacity to obtain a bond etc). The minimum standards for participation are stated in the Contract...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Over time the external Junior Certificate examination is to be phased out and externally set, administered and marked examinations will no longer be a feature of the final asessment at Junior Cycle. During the transition period, elements of the external examination will continue to be in place until they are fully phased out. Assessment in the new Junior Cycle will be supported by my...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: A technical inspection of the prefabricated accommodation in the school, referred to by the Deputy, was carried out by my Department in October 2010. According to the report provided by the Technical Team, the prefabs were found to be in good condition and well maintained with no major defects or barriers to purchase. A decision was made to purchase the rented accommodation as it provided...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Expenditure Reviews (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Under the expenditure ceilings set as part of last year's Comprehensive Expenditure Review, my Department is required to secure savings on current expenditure of €77 million in 2013. Due to the size and complexity of the Education and Skills Vote it is normal, and has been the case in recent years, for upward expenditure pressures to emerge in any given year. The net effect of these...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Applications (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Officials in my Department have confirmed with SUSI, the new centralised grant awarding authority, that on the 19th November, 2012 a request for further documentation was issued to the student referred to by the Deputy. When the requested documentation is returned the student will be notified directly of the outcome.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Capitation Grants (20 Nov 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: As the Deputy is aware Budget 2012 provided for a 2% reduction in the funding for capitation and related grants to primary and second level schools in both 2012 and 2013 and a further 1% in 2014 and 2015. Due to my decision last February to retain posts from previous disadvantage schemes in DEIS Band 1 and Band 2 primary schools, it was necessary to generate alternative savings within the...