Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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297. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the steps he is taking to ensure higher and further education institutions are facilitating students of courses with practical elements to receive alternative forms of course work or credit to enable them to acquire their qualification or progress to the next stage. [8210/20]

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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Following the onset of the Covid-19 outbreak, significant work has been undertaken by a stakeholder group chaired by the Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) and including the representative bodies of education providers in the further and higher education sectors to address issues relating to the maintenance of the quality and standards of qualifications. This group has focused on the implementation of a range of alternative arrangements, where appropriate and necessary, in order to meet these standards. Such alternative arrangements are being applied at an institutional level for teaching and learning, assessments and for practical course elements.

These arrangements have been developed to ensure that qualifications achieved by students during this period will be valued and regarded exactly as in any other year.

Providers have been communicating directly with their students to inform them of the measures that are being implemented for their particular courses to enable them to acquire their qualification or progress to the next stage. Students should contact their provider if they have any queries, including in relation to the practical elements of their courses.