Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 190: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if the funding has been made available to allow a school (details supplied) to recruit an extra class teacher to help ease the large class size numbers in the school. [9867/05]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 191: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the steps she had taken to reduce the class sizes in a school (details supplied) from 28.3 average per class to the stated goal in the programme for Government of 20:1. [9868/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I propose to take Questions Nos. 190 and 191 together.

The mainstream staffing of a primary school is determined by applying the enrolment of the school on 30 September of the previous school year to a staffing schedule, agreed between my Department and the education partners.

In accordance with the staffing schedule, the staffing of the school referred to by the Deputy for the 2004-05 school year is a principal plus 23 mainstream class teachers, based on an enrolment of 647 pupils at 30 September 2003. In addition the school has two learning support posts, four resource teaching posts and one temporary language support post.

My Department will finalise the staffing schedule for the 2005-06 school year shortly and thereafter notify school boards of management. According to data submitted to my Department by the board of management, the enrolment on 30 September 2004 in the school was 623 pupils. The staffing for the 2005-06 school year will be determined on the basis of this figure and in accordance with the agreed staffing schedule.

Significant improvements have been made in the pupil-teacher ratio at primary level in recent years. The ratio has fallen from 22.2:1 in the 1996-97 school year to 17.44:1 in the 2003-04 school year. In line with Government policy, my Department will continue to provide further reductions in the pupil-teacher ratio within available resources and subject to spending priorities within the education sector. Priority will be given to pupils with special needs, those from disadvantaged areas and those in junior classes.