Results 10,421-10,440 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The new simplified approach to the General Allocation Model of support for schools will make it easier to automatically update it annually in line with the changes in the number of classroom teachers in each school. Schools will also have autonomy on how to deploy the resource between language support and learning support depending on their specific needs. The arrangements for the staffing...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 208, 219 and 245 to 251, inclusive, together. At a time of great strain in our public finances, we have to ensure that the very valuable but limited resources available for the education system are used in the best way possible. The staffing schedule at primary level disproportionately benefits small primary schools. It is worth noting that we have 3,200...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy will be aware that my Department's home tuition scheme provides funding to parents to provide education at home for children who, for a number of reasons such as chronic illness, are unable to attend school. The scheme was extended in recent years to facilitate tuition for children awaiting a suitable educational placement and also to provide early educational intervention for...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The building project for the school referred to by the Deputy is currently at an advanced stage of architectural planning. Stage 2(b) submission (Detailed Design) was approved on 10th January 2012. The 2012 construction programme was published in December. Following on from this, my Department will shortly publish an outline five year programme on the projects to be constructed in that...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The Major Building Project referred to by the Deputy is currently at an early stage of Architectural Planning. The Design Team has recently been appointed and the Board of Management were authorised to commence Stage 1 (Preliminary Sketch Design) on 5th January 2012. My Department is awaiting a status update from the Board and their Design team. When this update has been received my...

Written Answers — School Closures: School Closures (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 212 to 214, inclusive, together. I want to clarify for the Deputy that I have no intention to forcibly close any schools, in County Meath or elsewhere in Ireland, arising from the announcement I made on 5th December 2011. I would advise the Deputy to read the detail of that announcement, available on www.education.ie, so he can familiarise himself with what I...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The salaries and allowances paid to private secretaries in my Department are set out in the following table. Any consideration of reductions in salaries or allowances for private secretaries would be a matter in the first instance for the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. Private Secretaries in Department of Education and Skills – Salaries and Allowances Position Salary...

Written Answers — Appointments to State Boards: Appointments to State Boards (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The following table provides a list of appointments made to bodies under the aegis of my Department since my appointment as Minister for Education and Skills for the Deputy's information. It should be noted that Board appointments, while made by me, as Minister, are not in all cases made at my sole discretion. Individuals may be nominated for appointment by various organisations as specified...

Written Answers — Third Level Graduates: Third Level Graduates (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The most recent data for graduate employment in Ireland was published in 2010 and relates to 2008 graduates. The full report "What do graduates do?" is available at www.hea.ie. The data shows that the most common initial employment sector for holders of all awards in Ireland was Non-market services, which includes education and health sectors, with 45.3% of level 8 honours degree graduates;...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The information requested by the Deputy is being compiled and will be forwarded direct to her.

Written Answers — Oideachas Lán-Ghaeilge: Oideachas Lán-Ghaeilge (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Glacann an bunoideachas ról feiceálach chun an chéad teanga oifigiúil a chaomhnú agus a leathnú amach. Is é an cuspóir tábhachtach a bhí riamh ag Rialtais leanúnacha Éireannacha ná chun an teanga Ghaeilge a chur chun cinn agus rinneadh a háit in ár gcóras oideachais a chosaint ar bhonn seasmhach i gconaí. Rinneadh a leithéid a fhrithchaitheamh sna blianta ghabh tharainn sa...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 221 and 240 together. The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible for determining the appropriate staffing levels in relation to the support of pupils with special educational needs in mainstream and special schools. The NCSE operates within my Department's policy in allocating this support. My Department's...

Written Answers — Jobs Initiative: Jobs Initiative (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: Teachers who have registered with the Teaching Council and have fulfilled all conditions other than probation currently apply to Limerick Education Centre (LEC) for probation. At present, inspection visits are conducted by the Department Inspectorate on behalf of the Teaching Council to evaluate the professional competence of the eligible teachers. The Inspectorate provides the teacher with...

Written Answers — Physical Education Facilities: Physical Education Facilities (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I fully appreciate the importance of Physical Education in promoting positive well being, and mental and physical health in schools, and the role this plays in supporting student achievement. However, curriculum overload has been found in many evaluations in the Irish system, and I do not intend to extend the length of time required for PE in primary or second level schools. My focus is on...

Written Answers — Third Level Institutions: Third Level Institutions (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 224 to 227, inclusive, together. As the Deputy was advised in relation to previous requests for information on various university costs, information of this nature is generally not readily available. Furthermore, given differences in management and financial information systems across the seven universities, it is difficult to collect consistent, comparable...

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The 2012 Gross Budget Allocation for Vote 26: Education & Skills was almost €8,672 million. Expenditure on Education services in Vote 26 is accounted for under seven main headings in Vote 26 as follows: 2012 Gross Budget Allocation € million Programme Amount % Administration €91.7 1% Other Services €329.4 4% First-Level Education €3,109.5 36% 2nd level Education €2,957.6...

Written Answers — Third Level Sector: Third Level Sector (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 230 to 234, inclusive, together. The Irish Universities Association (IUA) is the representative body for Ireland's seven universities. The Association, which was established by the universities themselves, is a non-profit making body with charitable status and is a company limited by guarantee not having a share capital. It is not a body under the aegis of...

Written Answers — Third Level Sector: Third Level Sector (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The information requested by the Deputy is being compiled and I will arrange to have it forwarded to the Deputy shortly.

Written Answers — Asbestos Remediation Programme: Asbestos Remediation Programme (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The project referred to by the Deputy is currently under construction with a design team and appointed contractor in place. My Department has published guideline documents on "Asbestos Management in Schools" and the Code of Practice for Management of Asbestos Material in Schools". These documents are available on my Department website at www.education.ie. Responsibility for ensuring the safe...

Written Answers — Third Level Sector: Third Level Sector (31 Jan 2012)

Ruairi Quinn: The National Strategy for Higher Education sets out an approach to the development of the system that is based on building strength through collaboration while retaining and fostering mission diversity across institutions. My Department and the Higher Education Authority, in partnership with our higher education institutions, are now together implementing the wide ranging reforms set out in...