Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

224. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of Irish Sign Language interpreters and Irish Sign Language tutors and teachers who currently operate here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27036/16]

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

278. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of requests that have been made in each county for an Irish Sign Language interpreter for both primary and secondary schools in 2016; the number of these requests which were met; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27079/16]

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

279. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of hours of Irish Sign Language interpretation currently awarded to students in each county and the way this is determined. [27080/16]

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

282. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the additional supports that exist within mainstream primary and post-primary settings for students who have a diagnosis of deaf or hearing-impaired; if he is satisfied that current supports are sufficient to meet the needs of these students; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27083/16]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 224, 278, 279 and 282 together.

I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department provides for an extensive range of supports to assist pupils who are deaf or hard of hearing.  

The policy of my Department is that children with special educational needs, including deaf and hard of hearing pupils, should be included in mainstream placements with additional supports provided. All schools and all school places are therefore available for children with special educational needs. In circumstances where children with special educational needs require more specialised interventions, special school or special class places are also provided.

The National Council for Special Education (NCSE), through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), is responsible for processing applications from schools for special educational needs supports, including the allocation of resources to schools for children who are deaf and hard of hearing. The NCSE operates within my Department's established criteria for the allocation of Special Education supports and the staffing resources available to my Department.

Depending on the needs of the child, deaf and hard of hearing pupils may receive additional teaching support in mainstream schools, either from a school's general allocation of Learning Support Teaching, or from an allocation of additional Resource Teacher hours to the schools from the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).

My Department currently provides staffing and funding for two Special Schools for the Deaf - the Holy Family School for the Deaf (an amalgamation of St. Mary’s and St. Joseph’s Schools for the Deaf) and the Mid West School for the Deaf.

My Department also provides funding for 16 special classes for pupils with hearing impairment (11 special classes are attached to mainstream primary schools and 5 classes at post-primary level). 

An enhanced capitation grant is provided to the special schools and special classes for hearing impaired pupils. 

Special Needs Assistant (SNA) support is also provided for pupils in those special schools and special classes, as required. Pupils who have care needs may receive access to Special Needs Assistant (SNA) support in schools. Many deaf and hard of hearing children have access to such SNA support.

For pre-school children and school-going pupils, funding is provided for a weekly tuition service to promote, develop and implement ISL, in order that it will achieve greater recognition and use in the education system, whereby tutors visit the homes of deaf and hard of hearing to provide training in Irish Sign Language (ISL) for these children, their siblings and parents. An application form is available on my Department’s website at www.education.ie.  Grants under this scheme are made to parents to  fund ISL tuition and 80 ISL tutors were nominated to deliver tuition through the ISL tuition scheme during the 2015/2016 school year.

Grant-aid is provided to schools towards the provision of special equipment such as soundfield systems and radio aids in accordance with my Department's Circular 0010/2013.  

Funding is also made available through the Special Education Support Service (SESS) to enable individual teachers and whole school staff to undertake courses in Irish Sign Language which are available throughout the country, through a variety of providers.

In addition, the Visiting Teacher Service for Children and Young People with a Hearing Impairment is provided by my Department from the time of referral through to third level education. The Visiting Teacher service provides advice and support to ensure that the needs of children and young people with hearing impairment are met.  This service is available at pre-school, primary and post-primary levels.  

My Department, through the Higher Education Authority (HEA), has established and funds a Centre for Deaf Studies in Trinity College, Dublin which provides diploma courses for ISL/English interpreters, deaf tutors and in deaf studies. The course modules deal with issues such as sign linguistics, bi-lingualism and socio-linguistics of sign language. The course is delivered in seminar sessions/group work and the award of the diploma is based on continued assessment and a project and course design. Details can be accessed at: .

The NCSE has also published a parental information leaflet for parents of children who are Deaf of Hard of Hearing, which provides details of the supports which are available.

The Deputy may be aware that assessment, rehabilitation and information services for children with hearing impairment and their families are also funded by the Health Service Executive (HSE), either directly or indirectly. Services provided include communication therapy and lip reading classes as well as sign language classes. Other Departments, parents, or external organisations, may also independently source or contract services from ISL tutors.

In relation to the provision of ISL interpreters in schools, I wish to advise that my Department’s Circulars 0071/2011 and 0030/2014 specifically restated the role of the SNA to ensure that it includes the necessary duties that are required to support the care needs of deaf and hard of hearing students, including in relation to the provision of ISL support and assistance.

The mechanism for the provision of communication support for children who are deaf or hard of hearing in schools is therefore provided through the SNA scheme.

Circular 0030/14, states that when SNA support is allocated to schools to cater for the needs of deaf or hard of hearing students, the schools should ensure that SNAs who work with deaf and hard of hearing children are equipped with the skills necessary to support the particular needs of these pupils, including capacity to use Sign Language where required.

It also states that where existing SNA staff are required to be trained to provide Sign Language or specialist training to assist in the provision of support for children with a specific sensory impairment, schools should ensure that the most senior SNA staff in the school are the staff that are trained in order to avoid a situation where staff trained in specialist skills may leave the school due to a reduction in the overall level of SNA support allocated to a school in future years.

I can advise, however, that my Department has received correspondence from three primary schools who have sought additional funding for Irish Sign Language communication, or interpretation, support for children who are deaf or hearing impaired, outside of the SNA scheme, on the grounds that resources under the terms of SNA Circular, 0030/2014, could not be accessed to provide SNA support with competence in ISL, as there was already surplus SNA support, but no existing ISL support available in the schools.  

As an exceptional measure, a time-bound communication grant was recommended for two schools to provide ISL support, which will allow the schools to provide for the pupils' current learning needs, as well as allowing the schools time and in-school expertise to develop its capacity to provide for the pupil’s ongoing needs in school. These grants were made for the provision of one additional staffing post at each of the schools concerned, while the actual number of hours to be worked and the employment contract is a matter between the schools and the employees.

In relation to the third application for support, the NCSE has allocated additional SNA support to the third school to support the care needs of the children involved.

I am satisfied that the totality of the resources being provided within the education system can ensure that all pupils who are deaf or hard of hearing can partake in education and be supported in our school system.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

225. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if the National Council for Special Education will be undertaking a review of the model for allocating special needs assistants as recommended by the focused policy assessment by the Irish Government Economic and Evaluation Service; and the terms of reference of this review. [26437/16]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Government publically announced its decision of 14^thJune 2016 to increase the number of Special Needs Assistant (SNA) posts available for allocation in schools by 860 posts. In keeping with the recommendation of the Focused Policy Assessment of the SNA scheme the Government also agreed and announced that the SNA scheme would be comprehensively assessed by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).

In line with the provisions of Section 20 (j) of the Education of Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004, I have requested the NCSE to lead a comprehensive assessment of the SNA scheme, in consultation with other relevant Departments and State Agencies, including the National Disability Authority (NDA). My officials have also asked the NCSE to ensure that bodies representing the interests of SNAs are also fully consulted in this process.

The NCSE has already commenced work in preparation for the review and it is expected that with the necessary research and comprehensive consultation it is envisaged that the review would be substantially finalised by the summer of 2017. 

The Terms of Reference of the comprehensive review is set out as follows for the Deputy’s information.

COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF THE SPECIAL NEEDS ASSISTANT (SNA) SCHEME

TERMS OF REFERENCE

August 2016The Minister for Education and Skills, Richard Bruton, T.D., requests the NCSE to lead a comprehensive review of the SNA scheme, in consultation with other relevant Departments and State Agencies, including the National Disability Authority (NDA) and in that context to:

1. Identify and recommend how, in the future, the additional care needs of students, over and above those needs that could be reasonably expected to be managed by teaching staff, should be met and

2. Identify and recommend the most appropriate form of support options to provide better outcomes for students with Special Educational Needs who have additional care needs, having regard to the significant amount of State investment in this area.

The Minister also requests the NCSE, as part of the review, to:

1. Examine whether the SNA scheme continues to meet its purpose as set out in Circular 0030/2014.

2. Consider whether the scheme is being used to meet needs, other than care needs, and if so, what are those needs, taking into account the primary and secondary care needs outlined in Circular 0030/2014.

3. provide advice on appropriate SNA qualifications and training levels

4. Evaluate the role of professional reports in providing a robust basis for the allocation of additional care supports under the scheme

5. Conduct a detailed analysis of the current allocation and distribution of SNAs focussing on what support is being given, to whom and why?

6. Define and examine outcomes of students under current arrangements, taking into account the findings of the Altered Provision Pilot Project

7. In preparing its report, to have regard to the commitments set out in the programme for a Partnership Government in relation to the introduction of an in-school speech and language service.

8. In preparing its Report to take account of the findings and recommendations of the Report on the Role of the special Needs Assistant which was published by the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Social Protection in January 2016.