Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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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). My Department is aware of the issue in the school referred to by the Deputy.

Ensuring a sufficient supply of qualified teachers is a priority area of action for the Department given the importance of ensuring that every child's experience in school is positive and that they have available to them qualified, engaged, and supportive teachers to support them in their learning.

To enhance the supply of teachers of Spanish my Department fully funds a 2-year part-time programme to upskill teachers to meet the Teaching Council's requirements in that subject. 35 teachers completed the programme in 2022 and more than 40 are expected to complete the programme this year. My Department has agreed to fund a further intake to the programme in September 2023.  In addition, a new Irish upskilling programme is planned for 2023/24 and consideration will be given to programmes in other subjects.

My Department is undertaking a comprehensive programme to support the supply of teachers, including:

- a range of special, temporary arrangements introduced by HEIs to create greater capacity for student teachers to provided substitute cover,

- adjustment of the provision of continuing professional development (CPD) to reduce the need for substitution and to provide additional personnel to support schools,

- increasing the additional hours that post primary teachers can teach each term from 20 to 35 for the remainder of the 2022/23 school year,

- launching a communications campaign to encourage retired teachers to take up short-term substitute positions and to enable them to teach for up to 50 days in each of the calendar years 2021 to 2023 without, in most cases, a reduction in their pension,

- providing the allocated staffing resources for the 2023/34 school year to post-primary schools on 26 January and to primary schools on 31 January,

- introduction, by the Teaching Council of regulations to allow the registration of 3rd and 4th year undergraduate student teachers, which has lead to over 2,100 student teachers applying for registration,

- providing for fully funded upskilling programmes in mathematics, physics and Spanish. Beginning with 170 places in January 2021, I have agreed to increase places to over 300 in 2023, and a new Irish upskilling programme is planned for 2023/24,

- providing for the allocation of a significant number of additional posts to primary substitute teacher supply panels in areas where significant challenges in sourcing substitution continue. This brings the total to 610 posts on 151 panels covering more than 2,840 schools,

- allowing job sharing teachers to be employed to work in a substitute capacity, during the period they are rostered off duty, in their own or in other schools on a temporary basis for the 2022/23 school year, and

- suspending, on a temporary basis, the limits on substitute work that apply to teachers on career break for the 2022/23 school year.

These measures are underpinned by the Teaching Transforms campaign which promotes the teaching profession and encourages students to follow a career in teaching.

Despite the positive impact of these important actions, work remains to be done to address teacher supply challenges, particularly to ensure the availability of sufficient numbers of substitute teachers. My Department continues to work intensively with all stakeholders to develop and implement creative solutions to address the teacher supply challenges for schools.

Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity)
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199. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if steps will be taken to ensure there is a qualified Spanish teacher provided for all years in a school (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5692/23]

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

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).  My Department is aware of the issue in the school referred to by the Deputy.

Ensuring a sufficient supply of qualified teachers is a priority area of action for the Department given the importance of ensuring that every child's experience in school is positive and that they have available to them qualified, engaged, and supportive teachers to support them in their learning.

To enhance the supply of teachers of Spanish my Department fully funds a 2-year part-time programme to upskill teachers to meet the Teaching Council's requirements in that subject. 35 teachers completed the programme in 2022 and more than 40 are expected to complete the programme this year. My Department has agreed to fund a further intake to the programme in September 2023.

My Department is undertaking a comprehensive programme to support the supply of teachers, including:

- a range of special, temporary arrangements introduced by HEIs to create greater capacity for student teachers to provided substitute cover,

- adjustment of the provision of continuing professional development (CPD) to reduce the need for substitution and to provide additional personnel to support schools,

- increasing the additional hours that post primary teachers can teach each term from 20 to 35 for the remainder of the 2022/23 school year,

- launching a communications campaign to encourage retired teachers to take up short-term substitute positions and to enable them to teach for up to 50 days in each of the calendar years 2021 to 2023 without, in most cases, a reduction in their pension,

- providing the allocated staffing resources for the 2023/34 school year to post-primary schools on 26 January and to primary schools on 31 January,

- introduction, by the Teaching Council of regulations to allow the registration of 3rd and 4th year undergraduate student teachers, which has lead to over 2,100 student teachers applying for registration,

- providing for fully funded upskilling programmes in mathematics, physics and Spanish. Beginning with 170 places in January 2021, I have agreed to increase places to over 300 in 2023, and a new Irish upskilling programme is planned for 2023/24,

- providing for the allocation of a significant number of additional posts to primary substitute teacher supply panels in areas where significant challenges in sourcing substitution continue. This brings the total to 610 posts on 151 panels covering more than 2,840 schools,

- allowing job sharing teachers to be employed to work in a substitute capacity, during the period they are rostered off duty, in their own or in other schools on a temporary basis for the 2022/23 school year, and

- suspending, on a temporary basis, the limits on substitute work that apply to teachers on career break for the 2022/23 school year.

These measures are underpinned by the Teaching Transforms campaign which promotes the teaching profession and encourages students to follow a career in teaching.

Despite the positive impact of these important actions, work remains to be done to address teacher supply challenges, particularly to ensure the availability of sufficient numbers of substitute teachers. My Department continues to work intensively with all stakeholders to develop and implement creative solutions to address the teacher supply challenges for schools.

Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity)
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200. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will report on the shortage of language teachers in secondary schools; the number of unfilled vacancies for foreign language teachers; the number of students unable to avail of a foreign language class as a result of unfilled vacancies; the measures she intends to take to fill these vacancies; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5693/23]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The recruitment and appointment of teachers to fill teaching posts is a matter for the individual school authorities, subject to procedures agreed under Section 24 of the Education Act 1998 (as amended by the Education (Amendment) Act 2012). My Department does not currently collate data on the number of vacant posts in post primary schools on a subject level basis or on the numbers of students not able to avail of a foreign language class as a result of unfilled vacancies.

Ensuring a sufficient supply of qualified teachers is a priority area of action for the Department given the importance of ensuring that every child's experience in school is positive and that they have available to them qualified, engaged, and supportive teachers to support them in their learning.

To enhance the supply of teachers of Spanish my Department fully funds a 2-year part-time programme to upskill teachers to meet the Teaching Council's requirements in that subject. 35 teachers completed the programme in 2022 and more than 40 are expected to complete the programme this year. My Department has agreed to fund a further intake to the programme in September 2023. In addition, a new Irish upskilling programme is planned for 2023/24 and consideration will be given to programmes in other subjects.

My Department is undertaking a comprehensive programme to support the supply of teachers, including:

- a range of special, temporary arrangements introduced by HEIs to create greater capacity for student teachers to provided substitute cover,

- adjustment of the provision of continuing professional development (CPD) to reduce the need for substitution and to provide additional personnel to support schools,

- increasing the additional hours that post primary teachers can teach each term from 20 to 35 for the remainder of the 2022/23 school year,

- launching a communications campaign to encourage retired teachers to take up short-term substitute positions and to enable them to teach for up to 50 days in each of the calendar years 2021 to 2023 without, in most cases, a reduction in their pension,

- providing the allocated staffing resources for the 2023/34 school year to post-primary schools on 26 January and to primary schools on 31 January,

- introduction, by the Teaching Council of regulations to allow the registration of 3rd and 4th year undergraduate student teachers, which has lead to over 2,100 student teachers applying for registration,

- providing for fully funded upskilling programmes in mathematics, physics and Spanish. Beginning with 170 places in January 2021, I have agreed to increase places to over 300 in 2023, and a new Irish upskilling programme is planned for 2023/24,

- providing for the allocation of a significant number of additional posts to primary substitute teacher supply panels in areas where significant challenges in sourcing substitution continue. This brings the total to 610 posts on 151 panels covering more than 2,840 schools,

- allowing job sharing teachers to be employed to work in a substitute capacity, during the period they are rostered off duty, in their own or in other schools on a temporary basis for the 2022/23 school year, and

- suspending, on a temporary basis, the limits on substitute work that apply to teachers on career break for the 2022/23 school year.

These measures are underpinned by the Teaching Transforms campaign which promotes the teaching profession and encourages students to follow a career in teaching.

Despite the positive impact of these important actions, work remains to be done to address teacher supply challenges, particularly to ensure the availability of sufficient numbers of substitute teachers. My Department continues to work intensively with all stakeholders to develop and implement creative solutions to address the teacher supply challenges for schools.