Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)
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Question 165: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the organisation and facilitation of exchanges of teachers and students between Ireland and France, in view of the cultural agreement signed in Paris on 4 November 1967, by J. Lynch on behalf of the Irish Government and M. Couve De Murville on behalf of the French Government which is included in Article 4; if she will describe the current programmes available and the success or otherwise of programmes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7221/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The Ireland-France Cultural Agreement, which was signed in 1967, provides a framework for the exchange of teachers, students, research workers, lecturers, assistants, scholars and cultural experts as well as representatives of university or extra-university cultural groups.

My Department administers a number of schemes under this Agreement including the Foreign Language Assistant Scheme, the Teacher Exchange Programme to France and the Professor/Expert Exchange Programme. A further programme, the Summer School Scholarships, is part-funded by my Department and administered by the Cultural Service of the Embassy of France in Ireland.

Under the Foreign Language Assistant Scheme, up to sixty French third Level students are assigned to Irish post primary schools for a period of 8 months annually. This scheme is very successful, with many Irish schools making applications to host a Language Assistant.

The Teacher Exchange Programme to France offers experienced Irish teachers of French the opportunity to work and gain experience of teaching in France for periods of either one term or for a full school year. A total of twelve exchanges with teachers in France are available in any school year.

The Professor/Expert Exchange Programme provides for exchanges of academics and is promoted in Higher Education Institutions by the Higher Education Authority. In 2007, two academics from Ireland participated in a visit to France under this Programme. In recent years, Ireland has not received applications from French academics to visit Ireland.

Thirty Summer School Scholarships are funded by my Department and the Cultural Service of the Embassy of France in Ireland. This programme allows experienced teachers of French in second-level schools to attend a two-week summer course for teachers of French as a Foreign Language in institutes such as the Centre de Linguistique Appliquée in Besancon or Cavilam in Vichy, France. This scheme is heavily over-subscribed each year.