Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach. I appreciate the opportunity to be here, to listen and to hear the issues and concerns that the Senators have raised. I am a believer in the collective wisdom and I appreciate the value of that in the education sector. It has served us well, and it is for that reason that we have consistently operated within the Department via the partnership in education.

Reference was made to who are the partners in education. These are parents, teachers, managerial bodies and, as Senator Malcolm Byrne in particular mentioned, the student voice. I am very proud to say that since I have become Minister, the student voice representatives and, specifically, second level students, are now very much an integrated part of the consultative body in education. They rightly take their place around the table when discussions and decisions pertaining to education are being made. Most particularly, and it has been raised here, that was the case in respect of senior cycle and moving on towards leaving certificate 2022. They are key members of the advisory group, they were for leaving certificate 2021 and, indeed, for leaving certificate 2020. I thank the Senators for that engagement. I appreciate the fact that the engagement in this Chamber has always been positive and proactive.

Dealing specifically with Senator Malcolm Byrne's contribution, I appreciate very much his positive words on the work, generosity and work ethic of the entire school community. All of those involved have been working collectively in the interests of public health.The Senator referred to mask-wearing, correctly, as a public health measure that we have been asked to implement. It is an additional measure to all the other tools we are using in schools as infection prevention and control measures, which are many and varied. They range from enhanced cleaning to the provision of personal protection equipment and hand sanitiser, the reconfiguration of spaces and antigen testing. We are cognisant of the fact that no single measure will be sufficient when it comes to tackling the ever-evolving Covid situation in which we find ourselves and recognise that a plethora of measures is required. This is an additional one.

The Senator specifically referred to disadvantage in education. This is an area in which I have a particular interest. In the broad scheme of that, we are aware of the importance of programmes such as DEIS in promoting equality, participation and opportunity in education for all. I am pleased to say that it was a key priority of mine and we delivered on that in the budget. There is now provision to extend the DEIS programme to additional schools. That can only be a positive step for the future. There is an allocation of €18 million for this year and that will rise further in the following year to ensure that the maximum number of schools can become part of the DEIS programme.

Equally, we recognise, and various speakers mentioned it in different contexts, that we are uniquely positioned at this point in terms of disadvantage brought about by the additional impact of Covid. Specific schemes have been introduced this year, such as CLASS. That is a significant investment by the Department. It is a recognition that students have been disadvantaged when they were no on the school campus and not in a position to avail of in-person teaching and learning, notwithstanding the superb efforts that were made by school communities to accommodate remote teaching and learning when the necessity arose. We know from our experience nationally and the experience internationally that, consistently, students are best placed and served when they are in the education setting. CLASS involves more than €52 million being made available to schools to provide an additional teaching resource directly into the schools, and various Senators have referred to the need for that. For example, a primary school with 250 students will now have an additional 15 weeks teaching, while a second level school with 850 students will have far in excess of that with 47 weeks full-time teaching available. That full-time teaching will address, for all, areas of academic teaching and learning. It goes beyond that because there is a recognition that the loss has been in respect of socialisation, well-being and areas of that nature. The vision relating to CLASS is that academic teaching and learning will be complemented by creativity and opportunities for students to engage in fun activities and activities that promote socialisation, integration and reintegration during the Covid pandemic.

The Senator also mentioned learning from Covid. It would not serve us well if we went through a unique and unprecedented experience and did not learn from it. We are learning from it every day. There are certain things we will learn from Covid that really worked well and which we would not have thought could work so well. I say that particularly in respect of technology and all that it has brought to the education sector. Due to the generosity of those who work in the education sector, they have pushed themselves forward individually and collectively as a sector by many years in terms of technology and various other issues. That speaks to the determination of schools to serve students and put them at the centre of all that happens in education. There was a willingness or buy-in, as it were, to reimagine, to pivot in new directions and basically to do what needed to be done to deliver education. I can assure Senators that there will be strong analysis of, and learning from, the Covid pandemic. We hope we will speaking about a post-Covid time as quickly as possible.

I acknowledge the wonderful visit to St. Teresa's mentioned by Senator Dolan, a wonderful and excellent facility, and the positive good news there. Certainly, we are committed to the additional accommodation also. I know it is close to the Senator's heart. I acknowledge the great welcome. It was such a positive visit. It is an excellent example of all that can happen well in the education sector. I said that on the day and I reiterate it here.