Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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1402. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the purpose of the primary and post-primary school questionnaire 2014; her views on whether it is very difficult for school principals to complete the questionnaire in that it seeks personal information about pupils' family circumstances; the services and funding for schools the data collected will determine; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34185/14]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department is currently considering potential revisions to the system of allocating Resource Teaching and Learning Support to schools. This is on foot of recommendations set out in the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) Policy Advice on "Supporting Students with Special Educational Needs in Schools (May 2013) and the recommendations of the NCSE Working Group Report "A Proposed New Model for Allocating Teaching Resources for Students with Special Educational Needs" (June 2014). Both of these reports are available at www.ncse.ie.

Following the publication of these reports, my Department had advised that it would commence the process of gathering information which would be required to develop the proposed new model, to allow its impact to be assessed, and to assess if, and from when, the model could be implemented.

One of the key steps identified by the group to assist in developing a new model is the establishment of a school's educational profile based on a number of elements, including the Social Context of the School.

My Department in conjunction with the NCSE, asked the Educational Research Centre (ERC) to conduct a survey of schools to assist the development of an educational profile for each school. The purpose of this questionnaire is to assist the NCSE to create an educational profile for each school, taking into account the socioeconomic circumstances of students attending schools. The questionnaire was developed following consultations with primary and post primary school management bodies.

In writing to schools, the ERC noted that some items on the questionnaire may be difficult for schools to complete. It was noted, however, that accurate information on the socioeconomic circumstances of students in a school is crucially important in developing a reliable educational profile for that school. The use of these data to create an educational profile is supported by both national and international research. Schools have therefore been requested to provide their best possible estimates in relation to the questions being asked in this survey. This will ensure that as accurate as possible a resource teaching allocation can be made schools in relation to the social context component of any proposed new allocation model.

Schools have also been advised that the ERC has also put in place a dedicated phone line in order to provide assistance and support to schools in completing the questionnaire.