Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

My Department provides funding for programmes of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) based on the concept of inclusive education which have been introduced in recent years. The areas of anti-racism, identity-based bullying and cultural awareness are addressed through a suite of supports and the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) provided by Department-funded support services to teachers at Primary and Post-Primary level.

The programme for CPD provided to schools includes Team Teaching where special education teachers and classroom teachers deepen their understanding of inclusive teaching and learning practices and effective models of team teaching. CPD is being provided for inclusion through team teaching at both primary and post primary levels through bespoke school support.

CPD for Social, personal and health education (SPHE) at primary and post-primary level is continuing through online provision in 2020/2021. Teachers can address teaching children respect for and an appreciation of human and cultural diversity through the SPHE curriculum.

The Well-being Policy Statement and Framework for Practice (2019) acknowledges that schools provide opportunities to develop friendships and to respectfully encounter diversity and access support structures. The policy promotes the provision of a whole-school approach to supporting well-being, an approach that has been found internationally to produce a wide range of educational and social benefits for individual children and young people, including increased inclusion, greater social cohesion, increased social capital and improvements to mental health.

At both primary and post-primary levels through Term 2 and 3 2020/2021, the PDST are facilitating online Workshops on the Introduction to the Well-being Policy Statement and Framework for Practice – (WPSFP) This CPD facilitates schools to examine the promotion of well-being in a multi-faceted approach to the betterment of the whole school community.

In addition to the above supports provided for CPD, the Teaching Council carried out a review of the standards for programmes of ITE, Initial Teacher Education: Criteria and Guidelines for Programme Providers. The review was informed by extensive engagement with the Department of Education, the Higher Education Institutes, relevant stakeholders and commissioned research on school placement.

Following completion of the review of the Criteria and Guidelines, the updated standards document, Céim – Standards for ITEwas published by the Teaching Council in November 2020. As part of this review the areas of intercultural, anti-racism and diversity have now been given greater prominence in the new Standards for ITE and Global Citizenship Education is now included as one of the seven core elements of ITE, to include Education for Sustainable Development; Well-being (personal and community); Social Justice, Inter culturalism. The revised standards define inclusive education as ‘any aspect of teachers’ learning aimed at improving their capacity to address and respond to the diversity of learners’ needs; to enable their participation in learning; and remove barriers to education through the accommodation and provision of appropriate structures and arrangements to enable each learner to achieve the maximum benefit from his /her attendance at school.’ Furthermore, the standards reference that ‘the Council’s view of a truly inclusive approach to professional practice recognises that teachers encounter a diverse range of needs in the course of their teaching, regardless of setting. This will include additional learning needs (e.g. autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia) and learning needs associated with diverse linguistic, socioeconomic, cultural and ethnic (including Traveller community, Roma) backgrounds.’

As part of the Review and Accreditation process, all programmes of initial teacher education will have to provide evidence of how the Core Elements are explored and examined with student teachers during the course of their ITE programme. It is also envisaged that the revised procedures for review and accreditation will include a thematic review, which will focus on specific areas of the curriculum/ ITE programme. All new programmes submitted to the Teaching Council for accreditation must now be in alignment with Céim.It is anticipated that existing programmes of ITE will be realigned in accordance with Céimfor commencement in September 2022.

With regard to anti –bullying procedures, The Action Plan on Bullying, published in January 2013, sets out my Department's approach to tackling bullying and promoting an anti-bullying culture in schools. It recommended 12 actions that focus on support for schools, teacher training, research and awareness raising and aims to ensure that all forms of bullying including identity based bullying are addressed. National Anti-Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post Primary schools, published in September 2013 are being implemented in all 4,000 primary and post primary schools throughout the country. The procedures are designed to give direction and guidance to school authorities and school personnel in preventing and tackling school-based bullying behaviour including identity based bullying amongst their pupils. The procedures make clear that the definition of bullying behaviour includes identity-based bullying such as racist bullying. The procedures require that the prevention of bullying must be an integral part of a school’s anti-bullying policy.

The Department’s Inspectorate monitors schools’ anti-bullying measures in primary, post-primary and centres for education during a number of inspection types, including whole school evaluations, curriculum/subject inspections of Social Personal Health Education (SPHE) and child protection and safeguarding inspections. During whole school evaluations (WSE), schools are required to provide evidence that their anti-bullying procedures are in accordance with the Department’s Anti-Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post-Primary Schools (2013).

In 2019, the NCCA published a curriculum audit on Traveller history and culture. The audit identified areas across the curriculum where teachers could teach about aspects of Traveller history and culture. The audit addressed the curriculum from Early Years, Primary and Post-Primary. The audit is available at:

NCCA is currently developing a report on Traveller culture and history to support learning and teaching of the curriculum. The report will include information on the history and cultural practices of the Traveller community as well as practical examples from schools and settings. The report aims to support teachers and school leaders on teaching and learning about Traveller history and culture.

The NCCA published Intercultural Guidelines for Primary and Post-Primary. These guidelines support the Primary School Curriculum (1999) and post-primary curricula by identifying the ways in which intercultural education permeates that curriculum. The aim of these guidelines is to contribute to the development of Ireland as an intercultural society based on a shared sense that language, culture and ethnic diversity is valuable. NCCA will be commencing a review of the Intercultural Education guidelines in 2021/2022 to ensure they continue to reflect curriculum developments in intercultural education.