Written answers

Thursday, 27 November 2014

Department of Education and Skills

Pupil-Teacher Ratio

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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178. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which she expects to be in a position to improve the pupil-teacher ratio and class sizes at primary and second level in the course of the coming year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45720/14]

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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182. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the total number of extra teachers likely to be employed at primary and second level schools throughout the country; if particular attention is likely to be provided to regions under pressure from population increase; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45724/14]

Photo of Jan O'SullivanJan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 178 and 182 together.

The Government's approach to restoring the economy has helped Ireland to return to a position where we are seeing economic growth. It is a continuing improvement in our economic growth over a sustained period that will enable us to move to a point where we can look again at providing for additional teacher resources in schools which could bring about an improvement in PTR, class size and support for classroom teachers. In the meantime, my Department's focus is on targeting any available resources to cater for the continued increase in student numbers across primary, post-primary and third level. If in future years there is funding available to reduce class sizes my preference is that it would be targeted at reducing class sizes at the infant years.

We have a growing population of young people in this country and despite the difficult financial circumstances we face as a country, we prioritised education so that the number of teachers we have in the system has also grown in order to protect existing pupil teacher ratios. There were a thousand more teachers employed in schools around the country in the last school year, than there was the year before. There will be a further increase of circa 1,300 teachers in the current school year. This is a very significant investment at a time of scarce resources.

The staffing arrangements for schools currently include the provision where schools experiencing rapid increases in enrolment can apply for additional permanent mainstream posts on developing grounds. Such posts are provisionally approved pending confirmation of actual enrolment on the following 30th September.

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