Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Education and Skills in view of the fact that as the literacy and numeracy for learning and life strategy requires all schools to engage in robust self-evaluation and have in place a three year school improvement plan, if he will confirm when he will publish Guidelines for Self-Evaluation in order to facilitate schools to proceed with the requirements that he has established. [42641/12]

Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his views on the School Self Evaluation Guidelines which are supposed to be in place to facilitate the planning and improvement of schools here; and the reason these guidelines have not yet been implemented. [43099/12]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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I proposed to take Questions Nos. 76 and 111 together.

The introduction of school self-evaluation is a key objective in the Programme for Government. In the 2011-12 school year, the Inspectorate of my Department prepared draft School Self-evaluation Guidelines. These draft Guidelines were trialled in a pilot scheme in a small number of primary and post-primary schools in the school year 2011-12. Detailed feedback on the operation of the guidelines was obtained from the pilot schools. The Inspectorate then engaged in an extensive consultation process about the Guidelines and set up an advisory group with representatives of all the education partners. Over a series of meetings between May and September 2012, the views of all partners were carefully considered together with the outcomes of the pilot phase. The guidelines have been re-written and an introductory booklet on school self-evaluation has also been prepared for schools. These publications are currently with designers and printers and I expect to publish them with an accompanying circular shortly. Web-based support, seminars for school principals, and advisory visits to schools by inspectors are among the range of supports that will be offered to schools to aid the introduction of school self-evaluation.