Results 901-920 of 9,040 for speaker:Hildegarde Naughton

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: To add a final thing, the inspectorate monitors the summer programme as well. The reports back from it have been really positive. It says the summer programme is working excellently and going very well.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: The Senator has hit the nail on the head in relation to some of the issues for parents. Even in the coming school year, it is an issue when classes become available in a particular school. I am speaking in general now. Parents have raised with me that sometimes when a place opens up it will be taken by a child already in the school who requires a special class. This is about information...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: It is both.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: The autism prevalence rates will be of interest to everybody. There has been a significant increase in the number of young people diagnosed with autism in Ireland. A Department of Health report in 2018 suggested that the autism prevalence rate was approximately 1.8% of the population. It is evident that figure is now outdated. Using the best information available, the Department of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: I get that this is only part of the jigsaw. There is also the whole area of community supports. Work is ongoing on forward planning. That is a role for the NCSE and my Department, working with the Departments of children and Health, which will play a key role in respect of the evidence regarding prevalence rates. This is not just about neurodiversity but also-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: Not all neurodiverse children will need supports. It is absolutely the case that we have challenges. I see that as I travel all around the country.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: There are challenges throughout the country. The Senator can characterise it any way he likes. I see that there is huge anger.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: I characterise it in the context of parents' anger and frustration. Yes, there is a crisis for families who cannot find a place for their children this coming school year.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: This is what I am working through every single week with the NCSE. It is why I am holding weekly meetings to discuss capacity. The NCSE has told me there is capacity for children who have additional needs to find a special school place. They will get places in the coming school year. These are the children who are known to the council. I will be brutally honest in saying that the council...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: I thank the Senator.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: I thank the Deputy for her questions. Teacher training is an issue of huge interest to me. I know that since September 2022, inclusive education has been a mandatory component in all initial teacher training programmes, aligning with the Céim standards for initial teacher education. I have been engaging with my colleague the Minister for higher education, Deputy O'Donovan, on teacher...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: Special schools are more complex and that is why the rate is €60. We want all schools to do it and we do not want to concentrate just on special schools. The Deputy is correct. What we are trying to do, from the Department's point of view, is reach out to schools to encourage them to take it up. Because the patrons own the schools, however, we do not have the ability to force them...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: I absolutely do not agree with that. One of the key barriers was pay for teachers and SNAs and we increased that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: The Deputy is right about early intervention and looking at the different milestones that children meet after they are born and along the way. That is a key part of this and it is within the community in primary care. These are the conversations we are having at the Cabinet committee. I note there is an enrolment bubble coming into second level. Enrolments in primary education will fall...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: I thank the Deputy.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: They will work in mainstream schools with special classes and special schools.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: Exactly. What I would like, through this budget, is to increase that. This is a model I know works. There is the nursing pilot as well, which Mr. Doody can talk about if the Deputy wants to hear about it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: The NCSE will have these therapists and the schools will apply to the NCSE for them to come into the schools to work directly with the teachers.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: Sorry, it is €30 for mainstream.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Hildegarde Naughton: The uptake across the country has increased. We put the resourcing into special schools with more complex needs but also, even in those mainstream schools, there was an increase in the rate of pay for teachers and SNAs. The funding is €40 million but it is a reconfiguration of the funding.