Introduction
Thank you for your invitation to address your Annual Congress.
We have a common interest – improving educational outcomes for all our pupils.
In my first year as Minister for Education and Skills I have been abundantly clear that this is my main objective.
It can be achieved only with your help and against the background of severe economic difficulties.
You don’t need me to remind you of those difficulties.
You see every day evidence of the effects of job losses, reductions in pay and cuts in public spending.
We all wish it were otherwise.
Yet almost 730 post-primary schools, big and small, urban and rural, open their doors to over 350,000 children every day.
Throughout the school year.
Of course there are problems.
Of course there are emergencies.
But you respond to them.
And you solve them.
No fuss.
No drama.
No headlines.
No shutdowns.
I salute you for the work that you do and the hope you inspire in your pupils, despite our present economic circumstances.
I also pay tribute to you for the manner in which you have responded positively to our reform agenda which I want to talk to you about today.
Economy
But, before I do so, I need to refer again to the difficult budgetary position, and show how stability has been achieved over the last year.
Your congress will understandably focus on the reductions and constraints in resources, which affect the work that you do each day.
But we cannot talk about the funding of the education system in isolation from the overall financial and budgetary context.
Despite the good progress we have made in reducing spending the gap between taxes and spending is still a staggering 18 thousand million euro each year.
I regularly hear calls for stimulus to our economy.
We must be clear – the €18bn we are borrowing this year is an enormous stimulus programme.
A stimulus programme that funds our teachers and doctors, our school buildings and sports grants, our teacher training colleges, and our social welfare system.
But a deficit of this size threatens the very existence and solvency of our state.
It is precisely because our finances are in such a weak position that only the EU, ECB and IMF are willing to lend to us.
No other lender is willing to take the risk with Ireland.
That is a measure of how far this country has fallen.
That is what it means to lose the economic independence of the republic.
That is why terms and conditions apply.
Stability
But some progress has been achieved over the last twelve months.
When this Government was elected just over twelve months ago, the country had seen no growth in 4 years.
For the first time since 2007, 2011 saw modest growth in our economy.
The action plan on jobs published by this Government aims to build on that stability, and help ensure that more Irish people get back to work.
And our stability is not solely focussed on headline national figures – it is being achieved through small changes right across our country.
We have seen some positive announcements recently. The Paypal investment of 1000 jobs in Dundalk has dominated headlines.
But all over the country companies, large and small, are increasingly pledging to create more jobs in the coming months and years.
These are real jobs, that will allow real people to find stability and recovery in their own lives.
To pay bills.
To raise children.
To live, rather than merely struggling to survive.
Similarly, our exports remain strong, showing that both multinational and indigenous companies are producing top quality products in Ireland.
They can help us build our way towards recovery.
When Irish companies secure more contracts as part of trade missions to China, to the US, to India and to the rest of Europe, each of these contracts feeds into our recovery.
And increases our tax revenues.
And helps get people back to work.
Step by step, stability is being achieved.
The job of work for the coming year is to build on that stability, and build a real recovery.
Referendum
One more significant step in cementing this progress will be signing up for the stability treaty.
Ireland derives enormous benefit from membership of the EU, not just in terms of the significant funding we receive, which benefits teachers and learners across our education system, but also in other areas.
The EU Lifelong Learning programme allows:
§ over 18,500 Irish third- level students and lecturing staff to participate in Erasmus educational exchanges
§ around 500 schools and 150 adult education organisations to participate in various European partnerships
§ 1,100 teachers and future teachers will also be given the opportunity to participate in the Comenius mobility programme, targeted towards schools
Between 2007 and 2013, the Department of Education and Skills will have received European Social Fund aid of approximately €130 million – funding which is used to tackle early school leaving, support people with a disability, and enhance the employability of young persons facing social exclusion.
Ireland has placed research and innovation at the heart our economic and jobs strategies.
We are currently doing very well in attracting EU research funding, with nearly €400m already received by Irish researchers and companies since 2007.
We are targeting a further drawdown of €200m over the next two years.
I don’t believe anyone can argue that our membership of the EU has not been good for Ireland, and for our education system.
The Stability Treaty is about ensuring long-term security, recovery, growth and jobs, for the whole of Europe.
And it’s about making sure we have access to the money that allows us to continue to fund our education system, and our other public services.
We’re determined to return to normal market funding next year – to raise money on our own again, like we did before.
Markets need to know there’s a backup in the form of the European Stability Mechanism.
That backup will ensure a strong euro, shared by 17 sovereign states.
We hope and intend not to need the ESM, but Ireland cannot afford to be excluded from it.
We can only access that mechanism if we ratify this Treaty on 31 May 2012.
Reform of Junior Cycle
Let me take a moment to step back and question what it is we as a society want for our children as learners and as citizens.
I think that we can agree that learning is a process of growth.
A process which should encourage students’ natural instincts of engagement and exploration, and equip them to adapt to the needs of a changing world.
One of the criticisms of our second level system has been the emphasis on recall and rote learning, rather than real understanding and competence.
Every June, the media commentary on both the Junior and the Leaving Certificate is focused on whether or not the exam was “as expected”, and whether or not it deviated from the norm expected by students, parents and teachers alike.
This discourse is symptomatic of a culture of “teaching to the test” which many, myself included, believe needs to be changed.
We need to ask ourselves how well the present system is providing those learning opportunities and serving the needs of our students.
I believe that, despite the excellent work done by principals and teachers, we could do better.
For this reason, reform of the Junior Cycle is essential and is currently being progressed.
In November last the NCCA published “Towards a Framework for Junior Cycle” and I have endorsed the thrust of these proposals on the future direction of junior cycle reform.
The reforms proposed by the NCCA will make space for the embedding of active learning and a greater shift towards school based assessment, though the terminal exam will remain an important aspect of the Junior Certificate.
Teachers are, I am glad to say, generally enthusiastic about the proposed changes.
The NCCA was looking for 40 schools to work on the practicalities of implementing the reforms.
It received three applications for every place in the scheme.
All the applicant schools said they were ready for change.
These were schools which are facing the same challenges of retirements, redeployments and cuts as everybody else and yet their appetite for innovative reform remains steadfast.
I know that parents and teachers want reassurance that any curricular changes will be adequately resourced.
I can assure you that I will prioritise this to the best of my
ability and despite the crisis in our public finances.
My Department has fully resourced the cost of the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategy for 2012.
We have provided in-service hours for maths teachers as part of Project Maths.
And I have taken the decision to roll out high speed broadband to all second level schools by 2014.
I intend to find sufficient resources for Junior Cycle reform.
Senior Cycle Reform
We are also looking at reform of our senior cycle curriculum.
Last year, for the first time ever, the NCCA and the Higher Education Authority held a joint conference.
This conference discussed the impact of transition to third level on the operation of the Leaving Certificate, and how students learn during the final years of their second level schooling.
This can and should inform our approach to Senior Cycle reform and I look forward to hearing the views of teachers before progressing further.
Some of the suggestions arising from the conference make common sense, like a requirement on third level colleges to offer more general entry courses and to reduce the trend of points inflation required to enter college.
Critical and creative thinking, and working with others must be to the foremost of our minds as syllabuses are revised in the coming years.
As you know, the new curriculum for Biology, Chemistry and Physics will take account of new scientific knowledge and skills.
I believe that an increased focus on practical investigation skills in the science subjects at Leaving Certificate is vital.
I expect this to be present in the syllabuses submitted to me for approval shortly.
No overview of reform is complete without a reference to what is happening in mathematics.
Ireland has one major advantage over other countries in that mathematics is a compulsory subject at Senior Cycle.
Despite this, mathematics is an area where we have seen significant weakness and where there is justified concern about the low take-up by students at higher level.
Project Maths has been introduced in order to transform teaching and learning of Mathematics at second level.
I understand concerns amongst teachers about the way in which the syllabus has been rolled out, but we must succeed in this reform.
The decision to award bonus points to higher level maths from this year has been generally welcomed.
Indeed, you may have seen figures recently which showed that already there has been a 20pc increase in the numbers of students applying to take higher level maths in the Leaving Cert exam in June.
Reform Agenda
The reforms to Junior and Senior Cycles represent two of the major reforms that I have initiated over the last twelve months.
I would like to take a moment to briefly touch on some of the other reforms which are currently underway across the education sector.
Forum on Patronage and Pluralism
The Report of the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary sector was published yesterday.
Having a school system which can cater adequately for demand for pluralism and diversity is a priority for our Government.
That is why I established the independent Forum, within my first few days in office. It is also why I have recognised, for the first time, Educate Together as a second-level patron.
As you know everyday when you look across your classrooms, our nation is changed and changing -
both in terms of the greater diversity of religious beliefs and the multicultural composition of the population.
The Forum report sets out ways for our primary schools to reflect this transformed society and provide for increased diversity.
At the heart of this is parental choice.
I am asking the Education Partners and interested parties to examine this report and take time to reflect on and digest the recommendations.
I am also studying the report’s recommendations.
I will outline my official response next month.
At second level, the process of decision-making in relation to the patronage of many of the new schools that are to be established in 2013 and 2014 is nearing conclusion.
This process is a balanced one to allow for applications to be made from patrons for the patronage of new schools that are to be established.
The criteria to be used place a particular emphasis on parental demand for plurality and diversity of patronage.
I plan to announce the patronage of the new schools within the next two months.
Literacy and Numeracy Strategy
We all know that literacy and numeracy skills are fundamental to a person’s life chances.
Yet information on national assessments, school inspections and international studies has shown that many of our students are not developing these skills to the best of their abilities.
Last July, I published the National Literacy and Numeracy strategy to prioritise literacy and numeracy and to endeavour to improve our outcomes at early childhood, primary and post-primary levels.
It sets out a radical programme of change in areas such as teacher education and CPD, curriculum change, monitoring of student progress and evaluating the work of schools.
The Strategy acknowledges the central role of parents and how we need to support them as they help their children to learn.
Implementation to date – with your support - has been encouraging.
But this is a long journey which will require a sustained effort over many years and of course in an economic climate which is extremely difficult at present.
Third Level
We are also embarking on the implementation phase of an ambitious change agenda for higher education, a sector in which you clearly have a strong interest.
This follows on from the publication early last year of the National Strategy for Higher Education in Ireland.
The quality of teaching is a cornerstone of this reform as much as it is pivotal for change and improvement at primary and post–primary levels.
In implementing the new higher education strategy all institutions have been asked to consider their future development, and issues such as collaboration, amalgamation and regional clusters.
As part of this process some Institutes of Technology may see their future in amalgamating with others with a view to applying to become a Technological University.
Further Education and Training
Of course, your members also have a strong interest in reforms which are underway which will impact on the delivery of further education and training, as well as adult education.
We are in the process of strengthening this sector.
As you know the 33 existing VECs are being replaced by 16 Education and Training Boards – 16 bodies across the country who will continue to play a vital role in the local management of education at all levels.
We will be transferring responsibility for training to these Boards.
This is a vote of confidence in the further education sector and its capacity to play a leading role in the enhancement of further education and training.
FÁS will be gone, to be replaced by SOLAS – a new organisation that will play a similar role in the further education and training area, as that played by the HEA in the higher education sector.
The implementation of these changes is underway, led by Minister of State Ciarán Cannon.
And of course we will be discussing these matters with your union as part of that implementation process.
They will lead to changes, but I believe they will be changes that will help ensure that the education we provide is best suited to help Irish people develop through education and training and get back to work.
Reform Summary
These are the headline reforms underway in our education sector.
We are also continuing to work on changes in many other areas.
In order to succeed, a culture of change must be encouraged to happen in every classroom.
I know there is always a temptation to cling to that which is familiar at times of crisis.
However, we should remember that during the darkest days of World War II in the 1940’s, our neighbours in Great Britain began planning for life after a crisis.
They drew up the Beveridge Plan which contained the blueprint for the National Health Service and the modern welfare state and most important of all, its education system.
We
must make the most of this opportunity to build a reformed society and economy our priority.
Our citizens deserve no less.
Gay and Lesbian Teachers
I want to make a brief comment now on a campaign the TUI has been involved in for some time.
The campaign to amend Section 37 of the Employment Equality Act to remove discrimination against gay and lesbian teachers.
Our programme for Government contains a commitment that we will remove discriminations against gay people, which prevent them from taking up employment as teachers.
And that is a commitment I intend to fulfil.
Recent weeks have seen some discussions around a draft bill which has been published by Senator Averil Power.
I have had conversations with Senator Power, and with Senators Ivana Bacik and Katherine Zappone, and we are determined to achieve progress on this matter in the near future.
In order to move quickly to stamp out such discrimination, I am also in contact with Minister Alan Shatter and the Attorney General, and we will publish proposals in the coming weeks.
This work to remove discrimination will also be underpinned by the Forum on bullying which will take place on May 17th, and which will be supported by a working group on bullying which will initially focus on tackling homophobic bullying.
Bursaries for disadvantaged students
Before I conclude, I want to make a brief comment on an initiative which will be announced later this afternoon.
As part of Budget 2012, I committed to abolishing all existing scholarship schemes, and replacing these with a new set of bursaries, aimed solely at students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Today, I am delighted to announce those new arrangements.
60 students from DEIS schools, and who hold medical cards, will receive a bursary of €2,000 each this September.
This number will rise over each of the next three years, with over 350 students a year benefiting by 2015.
The bursaries will be awarded regionally on the basis of the leaving cert results achieved by students.
I believe this is the only equitable manner of distributing the limited funds we have available for bursaries – focussing them on the students who most need our support.
These bursaries will be augmented by a small number of bursaries focussed on students who undertake studies in the STEM areas.
These bursaries will be named after Ernest Walton – Ireland’s only Nobel laureate in science, and the man who, with Cockcroft, was the first person to split the atom.
We hope that these bursaries will help ensure a new generation of Irish people strive to replicate his achievements.
Conclusion
In conclusion, we have an ambitious change agenda underway across all levels of education.
It is essential that this change is delivered if we are to create a future education system that we can be proud of.
I am sure that teachers will want to play their part in this process and will continue to make an invaluable contribution to our education system into the future.