Results 11,841-11,860 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn
- Written Answers — School Accommodation: School Accommodation (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: As the Deputy will be aware, the Carrigtwohill/Midleton area has been identified by my Department as one of the areas where, due to demographic changes, it is projected that there will be a requirement for significant additional school provision at both primary and post-primary levels over the coming years. In this context, I have recently announced that 20 new primary and 20 new post...
- Written Answers — Residential Institutions Redress Scheme: Residential Institutions Redress Scheme (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The Statutory Fund will focus solely on victims of residential institutional abuse, with eligibility being confined to those who received an award from the Redress Board or an award following a court decision or settlement who would otherwise have received an award from the Redress Board. Over 13,000 victims have received awards from the Redress Board to date and the Board has a further 530...
- Written Answers — School Curriculum: School Curriculum (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The NCCA has been asked to review the junior certificate and advise on the scope for reform designed to strengthen literacy and numeracy, embed key skills, promote active learning and enhanced creativity and innovation, and ensure appropriate ways of generating evidence of learning. Concerns have also been raised about curriculum overload, and rote learning. I am aware that teachers of...
- Written Answers — Education Sector: Education Sector (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 27, 122 and 123 together. The education and training system has a central role to play in the development of workforce and entrepreneurship skills and through the provision of the research and innovation system which will foster economic growth, enterprise development and the creation of future employment opportunities. The enterprise sector is represented on...
- Written Answers — State Examinations: State Examinations (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 28, 32, 33, 45 and 48 together. The NCCA has been asked to review the junior certificate and advise on the scope for reform designed to strengthen literacy and numeracy, embed key skills, promote active learning and enhanced creativity and innovation, and ensure appropriate ways of generating evidence of learning. Concerns have also been raised about...
- Written Answers — Education Sector Funding: Education Sector Funding (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The funding allocation for the Education Sector for 2012 and for future years will be determined in the context of the overall Estimates and Budgetary process, a key element of which will be the results of the Comprehensive Reviews of Expenditure (CRE) undertaken by all Government Departments. It is not, therefore, possible at this stage to predict what the allocation for my Department, and...
- Written Answers — Residential Institutions Redress Scheme: Residential Institutions Redress Scheme (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: I had a very constructive meeting with groups representing survivors of residential institutional abuse on 22nd July last, when we discussed the Government's approach to the proposed Statutory Fund to support the needs of victims of residential institutional abuse. The Government is proceeding with the drafting of the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Bill on the basis of the General...
- Written Answers — Proposed Legislation: Proposed Legislation (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The General Scheme of the Bill to establish the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund proposes the objects of the Statutory Fund to include the optimal disbursement of the available resources to meet the needs of survivors having regard to the principles of equity, consistency and transparency. While the General Scheme specifies the approved services for the purposes of the Fund, it...
- Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating resource teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools to support children with special educational needs. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support. This now...
- Written Answers — Residential Institutions Statutory Fund: Residential Institutions Statutory Fund (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The proposals contained in the General Scheme of the proposed Residential Institutions Statutory Fund, which has been published on my Department's website, have been drawn up following extensive consultation with survivors of residential institutional abuse and the groups which support them, together with a public consultation process. The Government has decided that the Fund should target...
- Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: Overall expenditure on the Education & Skills Vote of â¬5,251 million to end-August 2011 was running â¬66 million, or less than 1.2%, behind Profile. Current Expenditure of â¬4,977 million was running â¬71 million behind profile while Capital Expenditure of â¬274 million was â¬5 million ahead of profile. At the same time last year overall expenditure was also running some 1.2% (â¬65...
- Written Answers — Third-level Sector Staff: Third-level Sector Staff (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The economic circumstances of the country are such that the staffing moratorium introduced across the public sector by the previous Government in 2009 has to be maintained. The higher education sector has been given significant latitude within this moratorium relative to other areas of public expenditure. The Employment Control Framework introduced for the sector aims to provide institutions...
- Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The Teaching Council has recently carried out a survey of post-primary schools to ascertain the qualifications of maths teachers. The results of the survey shows that a significant majority, 68%, of teachers teaching maths in 258 schools are fully qualified to do so, that 29% have undergone some studies in maths and only 2% have no third level qualifications/studies in maths. The Teaching...
- Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating resource teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools to support children with special educational needs. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support. This now...
- Written Answers — Departmental Reviews: Departmental Reviews (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: A value for money review on small primary schools is currently under way in my Department. This review is part of the normal review processes undertaken by all Departments on an annual basis on selected areas of expenditure and is being conducted in line with the standard procedure for value for money reviews. These procedures require that the views of stakeholders be obtained. In this...
- Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: Firstly, I wish to reiterate this Government's commitment 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 — National Literacy Strategy: National Literacy Strategy (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: I published Literacy and Numeracy for Learning and Life, the National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011-2020, on 8 July. Good progress has already been made on implementing the early actions identified in the Strategy. One of the key actions in the Strategy is to require all schools to engage in robust self evaluation and put in place a three-year...
- Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The school to which the Deputy refers was included in the Ministerial announcement of January 2011. This school project is one where a brief will be formulated and the appointment of a Design Team will commence in 2011. The project brief for this particular school has been reviewed and agreed with the School Authorities. The next step will entail the appointment of a Design Team and this...
- Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy will be aware that a number of sections of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act have already been commenced. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) made recommendations which suggested that additional investment over a period of years of up to â¬235m per annum, across the education and health sectors, would be required to fully implement...
- Written Answers — Departmental Reports: Departmental Reports (22 Sep 2011)
Ruairi Quinn: For the Deputy's information, the list below of reports for the years in question (1997-2000) was compiled in response to previous parliamentary questions tabled some years ago. Of the fifty two reports commissioned during this timeframe, thirty four were implemented in full, a further 7 were partially implemented and some others were noted as project specific. Accordingly it would be...