Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick East, Labour)
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Question 208: To ask the Minister for Education and Science her views on whether there is no evidence that disadvantaged schools that have lost resource teaching hours as a result of the introduction of the weighted system no longer need them as implied in replies to parliamentary questions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38274/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy is aware, the general allocation of learning support and resource teachers, LSs and RTs, is intended to cater for children with learning support and high incidence special educational needs. The system was constructed so that LS and RT allocations would be based on pupil numbers, taking into account the differing needs of the most disadvantaged schools and evidence that boys have greater difficulties than girls in this regard.

The new system has a number of benefits. It puts resources in place on a more systematic basis, thereby giving schools more certainty about their resource levels. It facilitates early intervention as the resource is in place when the child enrols. It reduces the need for individual applications and supporting psychological assessments. It allows flexibility to school management in the deployment of resources, leading to a more effective and efficient delivery of services.

In introducing the general allocation system, transitional arrangements were also introduced whereby transitional hours were allocated to schools to cater for children for whom individual teaching resources had previously been allocated but which it would not have been possible for the school to continue to provide from its general allocation. In the circumstances no child should have experienced a loss of resource teaching support. It has however always been the case that schools in receipt of resource teacher support in respect of pupils with special educational needs would lose teacher support, either full posts or part-time hours, when the pupils that triggered the extra support left the school.

In the circumstances I do not propose to restore LSs and RTs to schools that are no longer entitled to them as a result of the pupils for whom the resources were originally allocated having left or transferred to other schools. Furthermore, I would remind the Deputy that the pupil teacher ratio for LS and RT support in the most disadvantaged schools is 80:1 and in addition to special needs supports, these schools also receive other supports as a result of their disadvantaged status.

I am satisfied that at this stage the general allocation system is working well and has been favourably received by schools. My Department will continue to work with schools and the education partners with a view to ensuring this remains the case. I would add that more than 5,000 teachers in our primary schools now work directly with children with special needs, including those requiring learning support. This compares to fewer than 1,500 in 1998. One out of every five primary school teachers is now working specifically with children with special needs.