Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
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162. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment uses the same child development model as the National Educational Psychological Service. [9012/23]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) advises the Minister for Education on curriculum and assessment for early childhood education, primary and post-primary schools.

This advice is generated in a highly collaborative manner and draws on extensive research and educational literature, and experiences of schools and early childhood settings. Information on the curriculum development processes and NCCA’s structures can be found on its website at www.ncca.ie.

The NCCA takes an evidence-informed approach with its research activity including, but not limited to, research in relation to specific aspects or areas of curriculum development; audits of curriculum provision in other jurisdictions; comparative studies locating Ireland in an international context; and consultations with teachers/practitioners, children/students, school leaders, parents, researchers and academics, wider stakeholders in the education system; and the general public. The research used to inform curriculum and assessment advice, as well as systemwide developments, also comes from longitudinal studies.

The NCCA draws on multiple theories of education in its curriculum and assessment work with these being articulated through curriculum components such as principles, statements of learning, key skills, and examples of teaching and learning to support enactment of the curriculum.

In the case of post-primary curriculum and assessment changes in recent years, including the Framework for Junior Cycle, and new Leaving Certificate subjects such as Politics and Society, Computer Science and Physical Education, extensive research, consultation data and deliberation and discussion shaped the developments. For example, the longitudinal study carried out by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) on behalf of the NCCA in the 2000s, provided significant insights into teaching, learning and assessment in the first three years of post-primary education and highlighted a number of challenges subsequently addressed in the Framework for Junior Cycle. In the case of the new Leaving Certificate subjects, each was shaped by a body of research captured in a Background Paper and Brief published for public consultation. Curriculum audits, research reports/papers, background papers and briefs, and consultation reports informing curriculum and assessment developments can be found on NCCA’s website - Publications and Research | NCCA.

The NCCA’s work on curriculum and assessment places a strong focus on the principle of ‘inclusion and diversity’ which can be seen in changes in post-primary education in the last decade. Guided by a mosaic of educational theories, this importance placed on inclusive curricula and assessment arrangements can be seen in the use of broad learning outcomes in curriculum specifications, the introduction of Classroom-Based Assessments which enable students to demonstrate their learning in a multitude of ways, and the policy decision to move to common level specifications in subjects other than English, Mathematics and Irish. NCCA’s development of Level 1 and Level 2 Learning Programmes for junior cycle students has played a key role in ensuring appropriate curriculum and assessment provision for all young people at this stage of their education. Work underway on the redevelopment of senior cycle will now build on this in support of the Minister’s vision for ‘Equity and Excellence for All’.

The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provides educational psychological support to all primary and post-primary schools. NEPS mission is to support the personal, social and educational development of all children through the application of psychological theory and practice in education, having particular regard for children with special educational needs.

In line with best international practice, NEPS provides a consultative model of service, with a focus on empowering school staff to support pupils across a range of needs.

NEPS delivers a comprehensive and integrated school psychological service to improve outcomes for all children and young people using a tiered service delivery framework. This model incorporates best practices in the application of psychology in education. Psychologists work to effect change at individual, group and system levels within schools. This framework supports schools in:

- The implementation of evidence based practices to promote positive academic and social–emotional outcomes for all

- The planning of targeted interventions and programmes for at-risk groups

- The provision of more intensive and individualised supports for those with complex needs and difficulties

The NEPS Model of Service includes a balance between casework (including direct casework with individual pupils, and indirect casework with their teachers/parents), and work of a more preventative or developmental nature, which is referred to as Support and Development work, and includes general consultation for teachers. In line with the NEPS model of service, NEPS has developed guidelines for schools on the provision of a continuum of support which identifies three levels of support: Whole School and Classroom Support for All, School Support for Some and School Support Plus for a Few. NEPS psychologists, therefore, offer a range of services which are responsive to type and level of need in schools to support the delivery of an effective continuum of support for children and young people in schools.

A Special Education Teacher (SET) Allocation Model was introduced by the Department of Education in 2017. The new model differs significantly from the old Resource Allocation Model, in that Special Education Teacher allocation is now frontloaded into schools to support children with special educational/additional needs. This model differs from the previous system whereby students were allocated a prescribed number of resource teaching hours on the basis of a named disability. The new model gives schools the capacity to respond to individual needs in a flexible way and pupils do not have to have a psychological assessment, or a diagnosis of a disability, in order to access Special Education Teaching. This means that those with the highest level of need can access the highest level of support within the school in a timely manner.