Liz McManus (Wicklow, Labour)
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Question 79: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of primary schools which during each school year beginning September 2002 to date in 2007, have pupil teacher ratios of 35:1 or higher, 30:1 to 34:1, 25:1 to 29:1, 20:1 to 24:1 and less than 20:1; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28475/07]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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In determining the pupil teacher ratio at primary level, all teachers in primary schools are counted, not only those employed as mainstream classroom teachers, but also those working in areas such as resource teaching and language support. In determining class size in primary schools, class teachers are counted. Pupil Teacher Ratio in respect of all primary schools is currently only available at national level and is not disaggregated by school or any other variable.The following is the Pupil Teacher Ratio nationally since September 2002:

2002/03, 18.0;

2003/04, 17.44;

2004/05, 17.1;

2005/06, 17;

2006/07, 16.4.

The Pupil Teacher Ratio for the 2007/08 school year is currently being compiled in my Department.

The following tables indicate the number of pupils by class size by county for the years 2002/03 to 2006/07. Information in relation to class sizes is provided in the annual census of primary schools. The data relating to class size for the 2007/08 school year will not be available until this process has been completed later in the school year.

As the Deputy will be aware, major improvements have been made in staffing at primary level in recent years. There are now 5,000 more primary teachers than there were in 2002. By the 2006/07 school year, we had reduced the average class size in our primary schools to 24, while the pupil teacher ratio was 16.4:1, including resource teachers etc. In that year, schools were staffed on the basis of a general rule of at least one classroom teacher for every 28 children. Given that the national average was 24, many schools benefited from much more favourable staffing ratios than this. Extra teachers were provided by the Government for the 2007/08 school year to improve primary school staffing so that schools would generally get at least one classroom teacher for every 27 children.

A further initiative in recent years that has been of direct benefit to primary schools has been the change in the criteria for developing schools. For the current school year the threshold for getting a developing school post was reduced specifically to help schools that are seeing large increases in enrolments each year. Over 330 such posts have been sanctioned in the 2007/08 school year compared to 280 in 2006/07. The improvements we have made in school staffing in recent years are absolutely unparalleled. The Government is committed to providing more teachers to our primary schools over the next five years in order to reduce class sizes. We will also continue our focus on measures to improve the quality of education in our primary schools to ensure that increased resources lead to better outcomes for our children.