James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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80. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the measures in place to promote the physical sciences such as physics and chemistry at leaving certificate level, including gender bias that may occur in subject availability and selection; if he is satisfied that an adequate number of teachers have degrees in the core subject being taught; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44817/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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This Government is committed to building upon our provision of STEM education in primary, post-primary and third level education in order to ensure that we have the graduates to fulfil the existing and growing needs in STEM.  Innovation 2020 - the Government’s five-year strategy on research and development, science and technology, has the goal of making Ireland a Global Innovation Leader, and by so doing, ensuring a strong and sustainable economy.

My Department's Action Plan for Education for 2016-2019 and the National Skills Strategy contain a clear commitment to supporting and developing STEM.

The STEM Education in the Irish School System report published in November of last year by the STEM Education Review Group presents a detailed examination of the provision of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Education in Ireland.  It focussed on schools and on the necessary capacity building required to achieve a step-change in outcomes for learners that will benefit our society and the economy.

The recommendations proposed by the STEM Education Review Group, of which I prioritised 21 for implementation, are consistent with many existing and planned initiatives.  One of these priority actions is the development of a STEM Education Policy Statement and Implementation Plan. The policy statement which will be published shortly will provide a national focus on STEM education in our early years settings and schools to ensure we have an engaged society and a highly skilled workforce in place.

Within our school system, STEM education is growing, while new initiatives will continue to support greater participation and improved performance in STEM.  My Department is committed to curricular reform in relation to STEM, for example

- Introduction of computer science subject at senior cycle, on a phased basis, starting in September 2018

- Introduction of new Science Syllabus for Junior Cycle in September 2016

- Junior Cycle Mathematics specification to be published in 2017 and implemented in 2018

- Three new Leaving Certificate specifications for Biology, Chemistry, and Physics approved on a provisional basis, pending the implementation of a trial of the assessment arrangements outlined in the specifications. This trial is taking place in Q4 2017, led by the National Council for Curriculum and

- Assessment and the State Examinations Commission.

- Development of a new primary mathematics curriculum which will include coding and support all children in the development of algorithmic and computational thinking.

Female participation in STEM remains an area for concern.  There are significant gender differences in the selection of STEM subjects at leaving Certificate.  However, while girls studied STEM in fewer numbers than boys in the Leaving Certificate they performed at the same level if not better than their peers.  It is hoped that the encouraging trends in Maths, Biology and Chemistry will continue, and that we will see an increase in the numbers of girls taking the Higher Level paper in Physics, Engineering and the technology subjects.  

The Action Plan for Education commits as one of the priority actions to addressing the gender imbalance in relation to STEM.  The issue of gender balance within STEM will be addressed within the STEM Education Policy Statement.  In addition continued support by my Department of initiatives and programmes which promote female participation in STEM at primary and post-primary school such as I-Wish and the Smart Futures initiative, managed by Science Foundation Ireland which promotes STEM-related careers to both males and females.  We are committed to working to remove the obstacles which have so far served to limit the involvement of young women in the STEM area.  

The recruitment and appointment of teachers to fill teaching posts is a matter for the individual school authority, subject to procedures agreed under Section 24 of the Education Act 1998 (as amended by the Education (Amendment) Act 2012).  In accordance with my Department’s Circular 31/2011, each person appointed to a teaching post must, as far as possible, be registered with the Teaching Council, and have qualifications appropriate to the sector and suitable to the post for which s/he is to be employed. Schools/ ETBs do not report to my Department on the qualifications of teachers employed by them.