Michael Noonan (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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Question 237: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if she has examined the submission made to her by the INTO for smaller class sizes and for the replacement of unqualified primary teachers with qualified teachers; if she has responded to the INTO; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11286/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I am aware of the INTO's position on these matters. The system for allocating teachers to primary schools is based on ensuring an overall maximum class of 29 in each school. Where some classes in a school have class sizes of greater than 29 pupils, it is generally because a decision has been taken at local level to use the school's teaching resources to have smaller numbers in other classes.

Significant improvements have been made in this area in recent years. The average class size at primary level is now 23.9, down from 26.6 in 1996-97. The pupil teacher ratio, which includes all the teachers in the school including resource teachers, has fallen from 22.2:1 in the 1996-97 school year to 17.44:1 in 2003-04. More than 4,000 additional teachers have been employed in our primary schools since 1997. These additional teaching posts have been used to reduce class sizes, to tackle educational disadvantage and to provide additional resources for children with special needs. Significantly smaller class sizes have been introduced in disadvantaged schools involved in the Giving Children an Even Break-Breaking the Cycle programme, with approximately 47,700 pupils in 243 participating schools availing of reduced class sizes of either 15 or 20 pupils per class.

In line with Government policy, I am committed, to delivering further reductions in class sizes for our schools. I have informed the INTO that priority must, and will, be given to children with special needs and those in disadvantaged areas. The recruitment and appointment of teachers to fill vacancies in an individual school is a matter for the board of management of the school concerned. Unqualified teachers should only be employed in exceptional circumstances and when all avenues for recruiting qualified personnel have been exhausted. The primary sector has experienced a shortage of trained teachers in recent years, mainly as a result of the large number of posts created to reduce class sizes, to cater for pupils in disadvantaged areas and to provide for those with special educational needs. The difficulties being experienced are aggravated by the number of teachers availing of career breaks and job sharing schemes.

My Department introduced a range of measures to address the shortage of qualified teachers and the number of unqualified teachers in our schools has significantly reduced. My officials will shortly be contacting all schools employing unqualified teachers with regard to recruitment of qualified personnel for the coming school year. I am committed to ensuring that the shortage of qualified teachers will be eliminated as speedily as possible and in this context my Department will continue to consider new initiatives and keep existing initiatives under review.