Results 11,281-11,300 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn

Special Educational Needs (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: The National Council for Special Education, NCSE, is responsible for allocating special needs assistants, SNAs, to schools in accordance with my Department's policy. Over the summer the NCSE has advised all mainstream schools of their SNA allocations in respect of valid applications received by 17 June. The NCSE retained 475 out of the total 10,575 SNA posts available to allocate them to...

Special Educational Needs (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I am pleased the Deputy took the initiative and met officials from the National Council for Special Education. The Department sets the policy and NCSE officials, who are the experts on the ground, deliver the instruments with which policy can be implemented. I am advised by the NCSE that it is retaining 175 of the 10,575 special needs assistant posts. I will speak to the council to...

Special Educational Needs (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I strongly urge any Member who has an interest in special needs assistants and the highly emotive area of special educational needs, which is driven by genuine concern among everyone involved, to attend a meeting with Ms Mary Brogan which will be held in the Iveagh Room tomorrow. Details have been circulated to all Deputies. Two weeks ago, I had an opportunity to hear a presentation given...

Special Educational Needs (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: This issue formed part of the presentation made to me and I have no doubt tomorrow's presentation will be similar. Ms Brogan discussed the relationship between special education needs organisers and professional psychologists, both in the private sector and the National Educational Psychology Service, their experience and the time available to them. These are matters about which all Members...

Third Level Remuneration (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: Policy on rates of pay in the education sector forms part of wider public pay policy, including related commitments and reforms under the Croke Park agreement. Of the employees to whom the Deputy refers, 89 are academic medical consultants. Remuneration matters for medical consultants in the main falls within the remit of the Minister for Health. The other ten posts fall into two groups....

Third Level Remuneration (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I will have that reference to section 25 followed up and will be in contact with the Deputy. I do not have the exact information available to me. I share the Deputy's view that highly paid academics who are engaged in much research work should also teach. The ideal model expressed to me by the Irish Universities Association and by other professional educationalists is that a well qualified...

Third Level Remuneration (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I do not, although I have heard many opinions on what needs to be done. I will be meeting with the Higher Education Authority, the Irish Universities Association and the institutes of technology to discuss with them how we can get more with less. I am told by people who say they have knowledge of inside operations that there is room for improvement, but until I see the detail of that, I do...

Vocational Education Committees (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I have decided to maintain a number of sub-offices where staff redeployment from the head office of an existing VEC to the head office of the relevant education and training board is precluded by the distance as provided for under the Croke Park agreement, which is 45 km. The chief executive officer of the new education and training board will be responsible for the deployment of staff of...

Vocational Education Committees (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: That is true.

Vocational Education Committees (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I regret the delay in the process being put in place to identify and hire the 16 new CEOs who will head up the new local education and training boards. Their role is central. We have had some talks and I hope this matter will be completed as soon as possible. When those 16 new CEOs are in place, it will be up to them to drive the process. I know some Members were concerned or disappointed...

Vocational Education Committees (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: No, because I want the person charged with the responsibility of running the entire operation in an executive manner to make those choices. We do not have the expertise in the Department - I certainly do not - to be second guessing situations on the ground.

School Curriculum (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I note the record will show that I have already answered questions on this.

Bullying in Schools (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 15 and 25 together. There is no requirement for school authorities to report incidents or allegations of bullying to my Department. My Department therefore does not maintain data in this regard. Section 23 of the Education Welfare Act 2000 requires all schools to have a code of behaviour. The Act further requires that such a code be prepared in accordance...

Bullying in Schools (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I will examine this issue again. I am not familiar with all the details, but I am very concerned about what the Deputy has said and I will take a personal interest in the matter. The amount of time this impasse has existed is simply unacceptable in a democratic republic. I will find out exactly what the situation is. I thank the Deputy for bringing the matter to my attention.

Pupil-Teacher Ratio (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: As I have already stated, I will not comment at this stage on any changes to the pupil-teacher ratio and the impact it could have. I assure the Deputy that the Government in its budget discussions will endeavour to protect front-line education services as far as possible. However, this must be done within the context of bringing our overall public expenditure back into line with what we can...

Pupil-Teacher Ratio (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: It is my intention that when the budget has been announced and the measures have been signed off and voted upon by the Dáil, I will ask a group within the Department to examine the impact the measures may have within different schools across the country. It is not possible at this stage to predict these in advance. The measures that will be enacted in schools after the budget will start in...

Pupil-Teacher Ratio (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy is all right. He can read it.

Pupil-Teacher Ratio (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: If I told the Deputy I was on page 602 of The German Genius by Peter Watson, which details to a considerable extent the extraordinary genius of the German people for the last three centuries, would that be sufficient indication of my interest in history?

Third Level Funding (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I have just received the report referred to by the Deputy, which relates to the sustainability of the existing funding framework for higher education. The report, which was undertaken by the Higher Education Authority, was submitted to me on Monday of this week. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationships between funding levels, the scale of growth and the maintenance of...

Third Level Funding (16 Nov 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I am not entirely sure why a report that is the product of another body has come to me first. It has not come as a draft report. The report has been completed. I will make inquiries to find out why that has happened. I will take on board the Deputy's point that the report should get into the public domain as soon as possible.