NORTHERN IRELAND MINISTERIAL STATEMENT ASSEMBLY North/South Ministerial Council — Educational Format Tuesday 11 December 2007 Mr Deputy Speaker: I have received notice from the Minister of Education that she wishes to make a statement on the recent North/South Ministerial Council The Assembly met at 10.30 am (Mr Deputy Speaker meeting in education sectoral format. [Mr McClarty] in the Chair). The Minister of Education (Ms Ruane): Go raibh Members observed two minutes’ silence. maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. Is mian liom an tuarascáil seo a leanas a dhéanamh ar an chéad chruinniú de chuid na Comhairle Aireachta Thuaidh/Theas i bhformáid earnáil oideachais ó cuireadh an Coiste ASSEMBLY BUSINESS Feidhmiúcháin agus an Tionol ar bun arís. D’aontaigh an tAire Edwin Poots MLA leis an tuarascáil seo. Tionóladh an cruinniú in óstlann St Helen’s Radisson Mr Deputy Speaker: I wish to inform Members SAS, Baile Átha Cliath ar 14 Samhain 2007. that there will be no lunchtime suspension of today’s I wish to make a report on the first North/South sitting because the Business Committee is not scheduled Ministerial Council (NSMC) meeting in education to meet. sectoral format since the restoration of the Executive and the Assembly. This report has been agreed with Edwin Poots MLA. The meeting was held at the Radisson SAS St Helen’s hotel in Dublin on Wednesday 14 November 2007. I represented the Executive as Minister of Education, along with Edwin Poots MLA, the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure. The Irish Government were represented by Mary Hanafin TD, Minister for Education and Science, who chaired the meeting. Déanfaidh mé achoimre ar na príomhphointí a tháinig aníos ag an chruinniú; cruinniú a dhírigh ar an réimse aontaithe i dtaca le comhoibriú Thuaidh/Theas san earnáil oideachais. I shall summarise the main points of the meeting, which concerned the agreed areas of North/South education co-operation. The Council welcomed progress in addressing educational underachievement, including successful initiatives to promote literacy and numeracy in schools. Officials were requested to develop proposals for consideration at the next North/South Ministerial Council meeting in education sectoral format. The ongoing co-operation in the area of school, youth and teacher exchanges was welcomed by the Council, and it was noted that a formal review of co-operation on education exchanges and supporting mechanisms, including the North/South Exchange Consortium, was shortly to commence, with a view to identifying a range of options for future progress in the light of current and future funding availability. Rinneadh plé ar shainriachtanais oideachais. Chuireamar fáilte fosta roimh thuarascáil ó phríomhfheidhmeannach agus ó chathaoirleach an 109 Ministerial Statement: North/South Tuesday 11 December 2007 Ministerial Council — Educational Format ionaid barr feabhais um uathachas sa Bhaile Láir. Rinne Ongoing co-operation between the inspectorates of an tuarascáil cuntas ginearálta ar an dul chun cinn both Education Departments in relation to sharing of suntasach a rinnedh go dtí seo ar ionad barr feabhais a best practice and research was welcomed by the bhunú sa Bhaile Láir agus ar na pleananna atá ann Council. Furthermore, the Council acknowledged the chun próiseas comhairliúcháin a dhéanamh le gach outstanding contribution made by the Standing páirtí leasmhar lena gcur ar an eolas faoin dóigh a Conference on Teacher Education, North and South soláthrófar na seribhísí. Thacamar leis na pleananna (SCoTENS), which provides support for all-island don ionad sna todhchaí; pleananna a chuimsíonn conferences; social, scientific and environmental soláthar seirbhísí oiliúna/comhairleoireachta agus education; initial teacher education; citizenship seirbhísí eolais/taighde agus oideachais, agus seirbhísí education; special educational needs; and for cross- foghlama agus tacaíochta atá réidh le tosú chomh luath border research projects. agus a bheas an obair thógála críochnaithe. Faoi choimirce na hEagraíochta um Chomhar agus Ministers welcomed a report on the establishment of Fhorbairt Eacnamaíoch, reachtáil an dá Roinn a centre of excellence for autism at Middletown. The Oideachais comhdháil de na tíortha rannpháirteacha i chief executive and chairperson of the centre outlined mBaile Átha Cliath ar 7 agus 8 Samhain 2007. De the significant progress made to date, and informed the thairbhe na comhdhála, fobrófar comhthionscnaimh Council of a consultation exercise, involving all taighde, agus é mar aidhm aici ceannairí scoile a stakeholders, to determine how services would be delivered. mhealladh agus a fhorbairt. The Council endorsed the centre’s future plans, which Déanfar iniúchadh ar an tsaincheist a bhaineann le include training, advisory and information research comhchláir ghairmiúla forbartha do ghrúpaí aontaithe. services and education. Learning and support services will come on stream when building work is completed. Under the auspices of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development — the OECD — the The Council discussed proposals for a 2008 joint two Education Departments hosted jointly a conference conference on autistic spectrum disorder, and welcomed of participating countries in Dublin on 7 and 8 November the distribution of parent-teacher videos, CD-ROMs 2007. As a result, a joint research initiative that is and guidance material on autism and dyslexia. aimed at attracting and developing school leaders will Moreover, the Council discussed other joint projects be developed. Joint professional-development in the field of special educational needs, including the programmes for agreed groups will also be explored. cross-border school and parent community partnership The Council discussed the issues that relate to programme, which was supported by the EU Peace and teacher superannuation, particularly the question of Reconciliation programme, and co-funded by both transferring superannuation entitlements between both Departments of Education. The project began in jurisdictions. It noted the decision that the North/South September 2006 and will run until August 2008 and Ministerial Council made at its meeting in institutional takes a cross-border schools-parents-community format in October 2007 that the Council’s joint secretariat approach to the education and socialisation of children will convene a working group of officials from with special educational needs. relevant Departments, including Finance Departments, Rinneadh plé ar cháilíochtaí agus aoisliúntas to consider the transfer of pension rights on a cross- múinteoirí. Rinne an Chomhairle suntas den dul chun border basis. That working group will report to a future cinn atá déanta ag an ghrúpa oibre um cháilíochtaí meeting of the North/South Ministerial Council. The múinteoirí agus go mbeidh na comhairlí teagaisc ag Council also agreed that officials from the Department comhoibriú ar na saincheisteanna san am atá le teacht of Education (DE) and the Department of Education and de réir mar is cuí. Science will participate in that working group and will report back to the next meeting of the North/South In respect of teacher qualifications and superannuation, Ministerial Council in education sectoral format on the Council noted progress made to date by the teachers’ issues that are relevant to the education sector. qualification working group, and that teaching councils will co-operate on the issues, as appropriate, in future. In closing, we agreed that the next meeting of the North/South Ministerial Council in education sectoral The Council recognised the significant changes to format should take place in spring 2008. Go raibh Irish language proficiency requirements for teaching maith agat. posts, and that a specific professional development programme, funded by the Department of Education Mr S Wilson: I welcome the Minister’s statement, and Science, and developed in Marino College of and I make it clear that, where it can, my party is more Education, Dublin, has been introduced to address the than happy to learn from good practice in other needs of primary school teachers who take the scrúdú countries. le haghaidh cáilíochta sa Ghaeilge, the Irish I notice that the Minister’s statement referred to proficiency examination. successful initiatives that have been undertaken to address 110 Ministerial Statement: North/South Tuesday 11 December 2007 Ministerial Council — Educational Format educational underachievement. During the past six learn from countries that have non-selective systems. months of the Minister’s term in office, the Northern There is tremendous work being done in Finland, which Ireland Audit Office has published a report on the poor tops the OECD league. I hope that the Chairperson of performance of the numeracy and literacy strategy; the the Committee for Education reads carefully the report Committee for Education has identified that of the 660 of that important OECD conference. Go raibh maith agat. teachers that have been trained in reading recovery, Mr Deputy Speaker: I call Mr Paul Butler. only 160 are being used in schools; and unrealistic targets have been set for numeracy and literacy in the Mr Butler: I do not have a question, Mr Deputy Programme for Government. Given those circumstances, Speaker. can the Minister tell the House what successful Mr K Robinson: It is interesting to note that the initiatives she discussed with her counterparts in the Sinn Féin representative is speechless this morning. Irish Republic? What good practices did she learn from