Sean Barrett (Independent)

The Minister of State, Deputy Cannon, pointed out that the education sector accounts for one third of employees in the public service. The report of an bord snip nua indicated that the pupil-teacher ratio at primary level, if all the adults are counted, is 12:1 and that spending on special needs increased by 922% in the period to which the Minister of State referred. In the current financial difficulties one must ask the awkward questions about what is happening.

Some of the answers are provided in the 2009 national assessments of mathematics and English reading. Pupil characteristics associated with higher test scores include high attendance rates; positive ratings by teachers, parents and self; positive mathematical self-concept; enjoyment of reading; and not being in receipt of additional support in school. When I was a member of the National Economic and Social Council there were concerns that much of the expenditure in this area was not yielding results. Lower pupil performance, which we in this House are united in seeking to correct, was found to be linked to several demographic characteristics such as the following: low familial socioeconomic status; parental unemployment; membership of the Traveller community; speaking a first language other than English or Irish; living in a lone parent household; and being part of a large family. A study conducted by the Educational Research Centre at St. Patrick's College in Drumcondra found that the problem in regard to language support is not being successfully addressed. At a time when money is in short supply we must seek solutions that work. We hear many complaints about class sizes of 30 and 40. If the average class size is 12, where is the misallocation of resources? We must examine these issues.

A recent study by the Royal Irish Academy suggests that part of the problem is on the teacher training side and that the problem cannot be addressed by focusing solely on additional assistance to children. The report indicated that 80% of mathematics teaching at second level is done by people with no qualification in the subject. That places additional stresses not only on teachers giving instruction in a subject outside their area of qualification but also on children. That should be examined. In Finland, which we admire so much in this regard, it is compulsory for teachers to have a masters degree in the subject in which they provide tuition. It may be the case that when teacher training was absorbed into the universities many decades ago, it should have been made compulsory for teachers to have a qualification in the subject they are engaged to teach. Such an approach would be fairer to pupils and would reduce the need for emergency interventions. In my own third level college up to 7% of students now require one-to-one counselling. All the evidence is that resources should be focused at the beginning of the education process and that teacher training must be urgently addressed, particularly in the area of mathematics. I commend that to the Minister of State.

This is the first stage of a comprehensive public spending review. It has been a problem in Irish education for some time that the tradition of an máistir and an múinteoir has been ignored in the breach. In Ireland people get promoted out of the classroom.