Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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502. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the position for teachers who wish to register with the Teaching Council and the requirement to have completed 300 teaching hours before registration; if any of these hours may be voluntary, undertaken for the purposes of qualifying for registration; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36769/14]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I take it that the Deputy is referring to the 300 hours Post-Qualification Employment (PQE) requirement, which is applied as a condition to all post-primary school teachers after registering under Regulation Four of the Teaching Council Registration Regulations 2009.

As the Deputy is aware, the Teaching Council is the body with statutory responsibility for the procedures and criteria for the probation of teachers including periods of probation.

In order to satisfy the condition of PQE, applicants must provide evidence of 300 hours' teaching employment in a recognised post-primary school and have three years to address this condition. Employment as a substitute teacher is acceptable for the purposes of fulfilling this condition. However, I am advised by the Teaching Council that voluntary hours are not reckonable against Post-Qualification Employment as they are not deemed to be employment, for the purposes of Post-Qualification Employment.

The Deputy may also wish to note that, under circular 46/2011, the Department allowed schools and ETBs to participate in the National Internship Scheme, JobBridge, administered by the Department of Social Protection. JobBridge can provide valuable teaching experience to teachers and assist them in securing employment subsequently. A JobBridge internship may allow a newly qualified teacher to undergo the probation/PQE process required to become fully registered.