Written answers

Tuesday, 18 May 2004

Department of Education and Science

School Curriculum

9:00 pm

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 263: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if the education system here is keeping pace with Ireland's competitors in the area of science and technology; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14658/04]

Photo of Noel DempseyNoel Dempsey (Meath, Fianna Fail)
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The education system here is keeping pace with Ireland's competitors. It is worth noting that the annual competitiveness report 2003 ranks Ireland as first out of 12 countries examined concerning the proportion of science and engineering graduates per 1,000 of the population aged 20 to 34.

The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, established on a statutory basis in 2001, is committed to continuous review of curriculum and assessment provision in line with best international practice, and to ensuring that the education system remains a key factor in Ireland's social and economic development. There have been significant curricular reforms in recent years, with new syllabi already implemented in leaving certificate biology, physics and chemistry, implementation of a revised junior certificate science syllabus in the majority of schools in 2003-04 as well as a revised syllabus in science in primary schools from 2003-04. All of these developments are being or have been supported by national inservice programmes for teachers and have been accompanied by significant resourcing over the period 1999 to date.

The range of ICT equipment available to support learning under successive school ICT initiatives at both levels of the system has expanded greatly and includes computers, the Internet, peripheral devices, multimedia, and a range of assistive technologies. Some €140 million has been invested in this area to date, 34,000 teachers have availed of ICT training, all schools are connected to the Internet and the average pupil to computer ratios are now reduced to 12:1 and 9:1 in primary and post-primary schools respectively. In February 2004 a new schools broadband access programme was agreed which will provide for an €18 million industry-Government investment fund to provide high speed broadband connectivity to all first and second level schools. NCCA guidelines for teachers have also been issued providing examples of how children in classrooms around the country are using ICT to add value to their learning with the primary school curriculum.

Within the third level sector, an unprecedented €600 million has been allocated under the programme for research in third level institutions to provide integrated institutional strategies, programmes and infrastructure to build the capacity of the sector to support world class strategic research, innovation and development in Ireland, as well as promoting greater inter disciplinary and inter-institutional co-operation. This has enabled funding to be provided for 33 research centres across many disciplines, 62 new and expanded research programmes have been established, more than 4,000 peer-reviewed publications have been issued, and some 901 post-graduate and 475 post-doctorate researchers have been funded. This investment is supplemented by funds from the HEA block grant, the Irish research councils and from other sources.

The OECD in-depth review of higher education under way is set in the context of assessing the strategic capacity of the third level sector to support lifelong learning and the transition to the knowledge society. My Department is committed to ensuring that Ireland continues to provide a high quality education system which promotes fulfilled personal development, economic competitiveness and social cohesion.

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 264: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the progress to date in his efforts to encourage the study of the sciences; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14659/04]

Photo of Noel DempseyNoel Dempsey (Meath, Fianna Fail)
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A range of actions is being taken to promote an increased uptake of science in second level schools, in line with the recommendations in the report of the task force on the physical sciences. In particular, important progress is being made in regard to the following: curricular reform and inservice support, with new syllabi already implemented in leaving certificate biology and physics and chemistry, revised syllabi in primary science and junior certificate science beginning in schools in 2003-04, and work under way on a new leaving certificate physical sciences syllabus to replace the physics and chemistry combined syllabus, all of which developments are being or have been supported by national inservice programmes for teachers, resourcing, with substantial grants issued to schools at primary level in 1999, 2001 and 2002, an additional per capita grant for physics and chemistry at leaving certificate, and a capital grants programme for senior cycle science ICT and science equipment, allied with the announcement in 2003 of a once-off grant scheme, likely to cost in the order of €12 million to support the implementation of the new junior certificate science syllabus — to date some 614 schools in the free education scheme have opted to provide the revised junior certificate science syllabus from 2003-04, grants of €5.1 million were issued to these schools at the end of January 2004 and a further tranche of payments to certain schools is being processed, as a result of which the revised junior certificate science syllabus provides for a more investigative approach to science education with some 30 experiments and investigations which have to be carried out over the period of the programme, a hands-on approach which is seen as critically important to enhance the attractiveness of the subject and encourage more students to choose the physical sciences at senior cycle; ICT integration projects in teaching and learning under the schools IT initiative, and the new TV scope programme in partnership with RTE, NCCA and the National Centre for Technology in Education; provision of materials and publications to schools to promote the attractiveness and relevance of science for students as a subject option and career path; reviews on mathematics, grading of subjects in the leaving certificate, gender equity issues in science, and initial reports on teacher training undertaken; wareness measures supported by industry and third level colleges linking with schools; the launch of the new discover science and engineering programme in October 2003 bringing together all the existing awareness activities in a unified strategy; and the announcement by the Tánaiste in December 2003 of plans for Ireland's first interactive learning centre for children and adults, designed to give visitors a hands-on experience and understanding of science, and to be an education and outreach centre for teachers and pupils — the exploration station is due to open in 2006 and will be sited in the OPW Heuston gate development in Kilmainham, Dublin.

This work continues to be progressed and enhanced as resources permit in collaboration and consultation with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Forfás and industry. My Department is fully committed to strengthening the quality of science teaching and learning, promoting increased scientific literacy and encouraging more students to choose science subjects at senior cycle and progress to third level options in this critical area as a vitally important part of the national strategy to support competitiveness and employment.

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