Committee Reports > List of Committees > Joint > 2004 > Committee on Education and Science > Report No. 02 - The Provision of Educational Services in a Multi-Ethnic/Multi-Cultural Society

Appendix VI

Presentation by the Department of Education and Science.

Presentation by the Department of Education and Science to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Science on Thursday 11^th March, 2004.

Subject: The provision of educational services in a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural society.

Mr. Chairman,

Thank you for giving us this opportunity to discuss this important area with the Committee. My colleagues and I will be very interested to hear the views of the Committee Members on this matter.

1. Demographic Context

Traditionally Ireland has been a country of outward migration and it is only in the last decade that inward migration has exceeded the level of outward migration. Skill and labour shortages have emerged in the Irish economy, which are being filled by returning emigrants, mobility within the European Union and a large growth in the numbers with work permits from non-EU countries. It is clear that Ireland is now a multicultural State.

In the last census of population, taken in 2002, non-Irish nationals number 226,200 or 5.8% of the total population. The principal geographical areas of origin are listed as the UK, Europe (non-EU), Asia, Africa, USA, Germany and France.

2. Educational Support to immigrant children

2.1 General

Immigrant children residing in Ireland are entitled to primary and post-primary education regardless of their legal status. Attendance at school is compulsory for all children aged from six to sixteen years, under the Education (Welfare) Act 2000. Schools are obliged to enrol any child in respect of whom an application for admission has been made, except where a refusal is in accordance with their admissions policy, published by the school under Section 15(2)(d) of the Education Act, 1998. Such an admissions policy cannot discriminate on grounds of nationality or legal status.

2.2. Language Support in Schools

The Department of Education and Science has put in place a system of language support for non-English speaking children, normally immigrants or Irish-born children of immigrants, enrolled in mainstream schools. This support takes the form of financial assistance, additional temporary teacher posts or portions of teacher posts. Full details on the support available to schools are contained in the Department of Education and Science booklet Information Booklet for Schools on Asylum Seekers. The level of support provided to any school is determined by the numbers of non-English speaking pupils or students on roll. School managements can decide on the structure of the support to be provided in their own schools, but it must focus on the language needs of the non-English speaking children, allowing them full access to the mainstream curriculum in as short a time as possible.

There is flexibility for schools in deciding the way in which to structure language support. The majority of schools operate a ‘withdrawal’ system whereby small groups of non-English speaking children are withdrawn from mainstream class during the normal school day for a number of hours per week. The most common mainstream class subjects from which such children are withdrawn are Gaeilge and Religious Education.

2.3 Integrate Ireland Language and Training Ltd.

Integrate Ireland Language and Training Ltd (IILT) was established in 1998 as the Refugee Language Support Unit under the aegis of the Centre for Language and Communication Studies at the University of Dublin, Trinity College. It provides training seminars for language support teachers, part-time or whole time, along with classroom materials, including the European Language Portfolio, to assist them in meeting the English language needs of their pupils/students. The classroom materials have been developed by IILT, in partnership with practising classroom teachers.

Language support teachers may be permanent members of the school staff who apply to act in this position on a temporary basis, or they may be specifically employed to carry out the required language support work. In all cases, however, language support teachers are members of school staff. IILT advises close liaison between language support teachers and mainstream class teachers so as to ensure that work done in language class reinforces that being done in the mainstream classroom.

Comprehensive English language tuition is available to adult immigrants with refugee status through IILT. Language and literacy provision for adult asylum seekers or immigrant workers is available through the adult education programmes run by the Vocational Education Committees in every county of the country.

2.4 Financial supports

All children, including immigrant children, enrolled in school are counted for the purposes of capitation grants to the school. In addition, grants are allocated to primary and post-primary schools by the Department of Education and Science to fund schoolbooks for children whose parents/guardians are unable to do so (School Books Grant Scheme). Asylum seekers, immigrant families and Irish nationals may avail of this grant.

Free school transport is provided to eligible children, based on distance from school, regardless of nationality or status. Asylum seekers living in direct provision accommodation centres are provided with free transport to all schools in which they are enrolled under the same criteria as apply to all other children.

Exemption from State examinations fees is available to holders of medical cards, regardless of nationality or status.

Schools granted full language support teacher posts receive additional financial support to enable the purchase of resource materials suitable for use within the language support class or mainstream class.

2.5 Enrolment of immigrant children

The Reception and Integration Agency (RIA), an inter-departmental agency under the Aegis of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, was established to facilitate a cohesive and co-ordinated approach to both the reception of asylum seekers and the integration of refugees. The RIA works with schools to ensure the enrolment of asylum seekers and it has produced a number of booklets, in the nine main languages of the asylum population. Booklets are available for parents of primary school children, post-primary children and for unaccompanied minors.

Immigrant children are placed in age appropriate classes, unless their standard of English language is so low as to prevent them from successfully following the curriculum of their peer group. In this case school authorities may place them in classes one level/year below. With the possible exception of Gaeilge and Religious Education, they follow the same curriculum as their Irish peers — children from abroad who have no understanding of English are required, under Department of Education and Science circular, to study only one of English or Irish language at school. The vast majority of immigrant children study English.

2.6 School Organisation

Schools have autonomy regarding adaptations made to the school environment in recognition of the multicultural nature of their pupil/student enrolments. Many display signs, posters and artwork in the main languages and traditions of the cultures represented in the school community, and promote cultural events during which the languages, food, dress, music and dance of the school’s pupils/students can be showcased.

There is an increased understanding within schools of the various religious occasions of importance to students from minority religious groups. It is not uncommon for schools to acknowledge religious seasons such as Ramadan or the Chinese New Year.

Students’ dress code is a matter for individual school managements and, generally, where a religious or cultural requirement is out of keeping with the school uniform a compromise is agreed between the family and the school, for example, wearing a required garment under or along with the uniform garments.

2.7 Separated Children Education Service

In 2003, a service entitled the Separated Children Education Service was established by City of Dublin and County Dublin Vocational Education Committees in order to deal specifically with the educational needs of unaccompanied minors and separated children residing in the greater Dublin area. Two Education Co-ordinators, funded through the Department, provide an educational assessment service, advise on appropriate placement, monitor and support enrolment, attendance and participation at school and devise and organise after-school and summer time programmes.

3: Intercultural Education

3.1 Educational Policy

Intercultural Education is one of the key responses to the changing shape of Irish society and to the existence of racism and discriminatory attitudes in Ireland. It has evolved from existing educational policy and is in keeping with other equality legislation and initiatives (Employment Equality Act, 1998; Equal Status Act, 2000).

Much of Ireland’s policy framework for education has sought to promote equality and interculturalism through education. The 1995 White Paper on Education — Charting our Education Future highlights that equality and pluralism are two of the key considerations, which underpin educational policy. The Education Act, 1998 sets out “to make provision in the interests of the common good for the education of every person in the state, …to ensure that the education system…respects the diversity of values, beliefs, languages and traditions in Irish society…”

Guidelines on Traveller Education in Primary Schools and Guidelines on Traveller Education in Post-Primary Schools, issued by the Department of Education and Science in 2002, also emphasise the importance of interculturalism within the school, emphasising the two elements of intercultural education—appreciation of diversity and challenging inequality:

3.2 The Primary School Curriculum

These principles are also endorsed in the Primary School Curriculum (1999). The Curriculum recognises the diversity of beliefs, values and aspirations of all religious and cultural groupings in Irish society and acknowledges that it has a “responsibility in promoting tolerance and respect for diversity in both school and the community”.

The curriculum’s vision for primary education identifies that the curriculum:

•celebrates the uniqueness of the child and seeks to nurture the child in all the elements of her or his life — spiritual, moral, cognitive, emotional, imaginative, aesthetic, social and physical

•recognises that children live in and are part of society and that their personal development is deeply affected by their relationships in the home and with other people

•recognises that education not only reflects society but is an influence in shaping its development. The curriculum equips people to share in the benefits of society and enables them to contribute effectively to society and to deal with and adjust to the changing nature of knowledge and of society.

The aims of primary education outlined in the Primary School Curriculum, provide an important foundation on which to build an intercultural approach. These aims include:

•to enable children to come to an understanding of the world through the acquisition of knowledge, concepts, skills and attitudes and the ability to think critically

•to enable children to develop spiritual, moral and religious values

•to enable children to develop a respect for cultural difference, an appreciation of civic responsibility, and an understanding of the social dimensions of life, past and present

•to enable children to develop skills and understanding in order to study their world and its inhabitants and appreciate the interrelationships between them

•to enable children to develop personally and socially and to relate to others with understanding and respect.

3.3 Post-Primary education

Each Junior Certificate Syllabus is presented for implementation within a general Junior Certificate curriculum context based on the Aims and Principles of the Junior Certificate Programme. These aims include:

•To contribute to the moral and spiritual development of the young person and to develop a tolerance and respect for the values and beliefs of others;

•To prepare the young person for the responsibilities of citizenship in the national context and in the context of the wider European and global communities.

While all subject areas contain opportunities for engaging in intercultural education, these opportunities are not explicitly stated in many of the subject syllabuses. However, examples of subjects in the Junior Cycle programme where principles of intercultural education are more explicitly presented include; Art, Craft and Design, Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE), Civic Social and Personal Education (CSPE) and Religious Education.

4. Intercultural Education Guidelines

The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment is producing guidelines on intercultural education and the curriculum for schools and teachers, to be completed within the next few months. There will be two publications—Intercultural Education and the Primary School Curriculum and Intercultural Education in the Post-primary School.

These guidelines will be provided to every teacher, and will include specific instructions on school and classroom planning for intercultural education, choosing classroom resources, thematic planning for intercultural education, identifying intercultural education opportunities across the curriculum, approaches and methodologies, assessment and language. They aim to mainstream intercultural education across all aspects of the curriculum with the main approach being on identifying opportunities for intercultural education within the curriculum and demonstrating how teachers can further develop these opportunities in the school and classroom.

5. Conclusion

That concludes our presentation, Mr. Chairman. Relevant statistical information is given in the Appendix to the material provided to the Committee. I hope we will be able to deal with any issues which members of the Committee may wish to discuss.

Appendix

Scope of Educational Support Schemes impacting on non-English speaking children and adults