Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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186. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills in view of the fact that the Special Education Support Service advised teachers and his Department that teachers providing applied behaviour analysis as part of the education of a child with autism should receive on-site and off-site supervision from a professionally qualified behaviour analyst and he has confirmed that he has not received any autism-specific policy advice from the NCSE, if he will name the experts or organisations who advised his Department to remove the requirement that teachers should receive supervision or training from a professionally qualified behaviour analyst before taking charge of an autism spectrum disorder classroom from departmental policy when his Department changed its policy in 2006-07. [19164/14]

Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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216. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reason his Department made the decision to remove the obligation on teachers to receive training and or supervision from a professionally qualified behaviour analyst from its policy given that the SESS had advised that teachers should be provided with on and off-site supervision from a behaviour analyst when providing ABA to children with ASD, and the NCSE never provided the his Department with any ASD-specific policy advice. [19672/14]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 186 and 216 together.

Under the Teaching Council Act 2001, the Teaching Council is the body with statutory regulatory authority for the professional registration of teachers. The Council sets standards of entry to the profession and accredits initial teacher education programmes. I am satisfied that primary teachers are qualified to teach in a wide range of school environments including autism units.

I should also point out that SESS is a support service for teachers and is not involved in the supervision of the implementation of ABA and does not advise teachers or my Department in this regard.

SESS continues to make provision for a comprehensive system of continuing professional development (CPD) for teachers in the area of special educational needs including teachers of children with autism.

Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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187. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if his Department informed the Ombudsman for Children of its decision to disregard her recommendation to promptly publish an autism policy document in 2012; and if he has received any correspondence from the Ombudsman's office indicating its dissatisfaction with this decision. [19165/14]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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The Ombudsman for Children encouraged my Department to consider publishing a policy document on educating children with autism. My Department advised during the course of last year that it was preparing to bring together all of the facets of the policy on the education of children with autism into one document to provide further clarity on the issue.

In the interim I requested the National Council Special Education (NCSE) to bring forward policy advice on the education of children with autism. The NCSE has advised my Department that the Policy Advice will be delivered in the spring of 2015 and will draw upon findings gathered from an extensive consultation process which has already commenced. I expect that the NCSE final report will reflect the broadest possible range of views and provide recommendations which will assist the development of policy for future years.

Therefore I see no merit in revising the existing format of the current policy in advance of the publication of the new policy advice. However my officials are currently compiling an information pamphlet for parents of children with autism in consultation with NCSE; the pamphlet is aimed at informing parents and guardians of my Department's policy on the education of children with autism and the supports and services available to them.

My Department has not received correspondence from the Ombudsman’s office expressing its dissatisfaction with this decision.