Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 674: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11248/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 675: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11249/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 676: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11250/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 677: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11251/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 678: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11252/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 679: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11253/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 680: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11254/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 681: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11255/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 682: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11256/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 683: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11257/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 684: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11258/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 685: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11259/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 686: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11260/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 687: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11261/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 688: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11262/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 689: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11263/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 690: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11264/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 691: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11265/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 692: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11266/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 693: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11267/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 694: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11268/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 695: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11269/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 696: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11270/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 697: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11271/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 698: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) in Dublin 15 which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11272/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 674 to 698, inclusive, together.

The information requested by the Deputy is not readily available and would take an inordinate amount of administrative time to compile.

As the Deputy will be aware, major improvements have been made in staffing at primary level in recent years. There are now in the region of 6,000 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.

Combined with the 6,000 more primary school teachers referred to and the extra teachers put in the current school year, the additional primary teachers planned for 2008/09 will mean this Government will be well ahead of target in relation to the Programme for Government commitment to hire 4,000 extra primary teachers between 2007 and 2012. Indeed, 2,000 of these will be in place by next Spring.

Over the lifetime of the Government, we are committed to providing more primary school teachers specifically 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.

An independent staffing appeal process is available to Boards of Management of individual schools. They can submit an appeal under certain criteria to an Appeal Board which was established to adjudicate on appeals on mainstream staffing allocations in primary schools. Details of the criteria and application dates for appeal are contained in the staffing schedule. The Appeal Board operates independently of the Department and its decision is final.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 699: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of classes in a school (details supplied) which have 30 or more children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11273/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The information requested by the Deputy is not readily available and would take an inordinate amount of administrative time to compile.

As the Deputy will be aware, major improvements have been made in staffing at primary level in recent years. There are now in the region of 6,000 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 4, 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.

Combined with the 6,000 more primary school teachers referred to and the extra teachers put in the current school year, the additional primary teachers planned for 2008/09 will mean this Government will be well ahead of target in relation to the Programme for Government commitment to hire 4,000 extra primary teachers between 2007 and 2012. Indeed, 2,000 of these will be in place by next Spring.

Over the lifetime of the Government, we are committed to providing more primary school teachers specifically 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.

An independent staffing appeal process is available to Boards of Management of individual schools. They can submit an appeal under certain criteria to an Appeal Board which was established to adjudicate on appeals on mainstream staffing allocations in primary schools. Details of the criteria and application dates for appeal are contained in the staffing schedule. The Appeal Board operates independently of the Department and its decision is final.