Maeve O'Connell (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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10. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will report on her Department’s rollout of reading classes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8475/25]

Michael Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail)
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At present, there are 14 reading classes and 4 special schools to support students with severe dyslexia and I want to acknowledge the excellent work they do. It is important to note they were established at a time when there were much fewer additional supports in schools.

We are working to develop a more inclusive education system, and therefore we want to support students to attend their local mainstream schools. This means that children can be educated with their peers and are not required to travel long distances to attend special schools or classes.

We have provided 15,000 special education teachers to enable schools to achieve this. In practical terms this means schools get a substantial additional teaching allocation to support children with special education needs who are in mainstream classes.

The additional resources are intended to support students with the greatest level of need, including those with dyslexia or severe dyslexia.

Of course, I recognise the importance of building the capacity of teachers in mainstream schools to meet the needs of all students. To support this, we provide 338 funded places each year to teachers to attend post-graduate special education needs programmes. The NCSE offers dedicated professional learning opportunities for teachers supporting students with additional needs. The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) also provides professional learning opportunities that are available to all primary and post primary school teachers on supporting children and young people with literacy difficulties, including dyslexia.

Funding is also made available to schools for the purchase of specialised equipment to assist children. Schools can apply to the NCSE, through their local special educational needs organiser (SENO) for such support.

The need for any additional provision or resources for schools to support students with dyslexia is kept under constant review by the NCSE.