Minister for Education and Skills Ruairí Quinn T.D., publishes new anti-bullying procedures for all primary and post primary schools
September 13, 2013
Schools will be required to have education and prevention strategies for cyberbullying.
The Minister for Education and Skills, Ruairí Quinn T.D., has today published new anti-bullying procedures to be adopted and implemented by all 4,000 primary and post primary schools. The New Procedures and the associated Department Circular 0045/13 are now published on the Department’s Website.
These procedures have been developed following consultation with the relevant education partners and replace guidelines that were issued to schools in 1993. These procedures have resulted from a review of the 1993 guidelines and the implementation of the Action Plan on Bullying that was published in January 2013.
The new procedures require that the prevention of bullying must be an integral part of a school’s anti-bullying policy. Minister Quinn said “he was pleased to note the strong focus in the procedures on education and prevention strategies to deal with bullying behaviour including, in particular, cyberbullying and identity based bullying such as homophobic and transphobic bullying”.
Each school must now develop its anti-bullying policy in accordance with the procedures. The policy must be developed in consultation with parents, students, and all school staff, and aim to create a positive school culture and climate that is inclusive and welcoming of difference.
Key elements of the procedures are:
- A strong emphasis on prevention of bullying behaviour through the fostering and development of a positive school culture and climate that is based on inclusivity and respect
- A school-wide approach to preventing and tackling bullying behaviour
- A requirement that all schools must adhere to the standardised policy template for developing their anti-bullying policy
- Greater transparency for parents and pupils through the requirement for schools to publish their anti-bullying policy on the school’s website and give it to the parents association
- Making clear that the definition of bullying includes cyber-bullying and identity based bullying (such as homophobic and racist bullying)
- Practical tips for building a positive school culture and climate that is based on inclusivity and respect
- Clear procedures for investigating, recording and dealing with bullying. The procedures emphasise that the primary aim in investigating and dealing with bullying is to resolve any issues and restore as far as practicable the relationships of the parties involved (rather than to apportion blame)
- Oversight arrangements that involve the School Principal reporting regularly to the Board of Management and a requirement for the Board to do an annual review of the school’s anti- bullying policy and its implementation. Confirmation that the annual review was done must be provided to the parents association and published on the school website.
All schools are required to immediately commence the necessary arrangements for developing and formally adopting an anti-bullying policy that fully complies with the requirements of the new procedures. This is expected to be completed by each school as early as possible in the 2013/14 school year but in any event by no later than the end of the second term of the 2013/14 school year.
Minister Quinn said that “the procedures give a great opportunity to reinvigorate and strengthen our approach to preventing and tackling bullying in schools”. He went on to say that the procedures are written in a user-friendly manner and focus in a very practical way on what schools must do to prevent and deal with bullying. The key is to get the basics right across all 4,000 schools. Many schools already do this well and the new procedures will underpin and improve what they already do. For those schools that are not as good at dealing with bullying the new procedures provide a bullying policy template and practical guidance and tips so that they are clear on what they have to do. Arising from the commitments in the Action Plan on Bullying, the Department’s Inspectorate will be placing a stronger focus on the actions schools take to create a positive school culture and to prevent and tackle bullying.”
Minister Quinn thanked the various education partners for their input into the new procedures. He also acknowledged the lead role of Teresa McNeill, Assistant Principal in his Department who worked closely with the education partners in the development of these procedures.
The new procedures are designed to give direction and guidance to school authorities and school personnel in preventing and tackling school-based bullying behaviour amongst its pupils. The procedures will also help to deal with any negative impact of bullying behaviour within school that occurs elsewhere.
These procedures apply to all recognised primary and post-primary schools and to centres for education (as defined in the Education Act 1998) that are attended by pupils under the age of 18 years. Where a school caters for vulnerable adults these procedures also apply to those adult learners. School authorities and school personnel are required to adhere to these procedures in dealing with allegations and incidents of bullying.
The new procedures define bullying as unwanted negative behaviour, verbal, psychological or physical conducted by an individual or group against another person (or persons) and which is repeated over time. These procedures make clear that this definition includes cyber-bullying and identity-based bullying (such as homophobic bullying and racist bullying).
€ 3.4M for an Irish Language and Gaeltacht Development Centre
September 13, 2013
Plans have been announced today for an Irish language and Gaeltacht Development Centre in Baile an Fheirtéaraigh, Co. Kerry. The new 1,400m2 development will cost in the region of €3.4M.
The new centre will be home to offices and facilities for Comharchumann Forbartha Chorca Dhuibhne Teo; a family support centre with services and amenities for preschool and naíonra childcare services; training facilities; and three Údarás na Gaeltachta enterprise centres. It is also intended to develop a playground on the site which is situated close to the village of An Buailtín.
The Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht have awarded €1.74M to the project, €500,000 will be made available by Comharchumann Forbartha Chorca Dhuibhne, and the remainder, €1.2M will be provided by Údarás na Gaeltachta. All work is expected to be completed by autumn of next year.
Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Dinny McGinley TD has welcomed the development saying: “The family support services available from this centre are necessary to give Corca Dhuibhne full support as a Gaeltacht area. This development is a practical example of the implementation of the 20 Year Strategy for the Irish language, and the initiative will be central to the language planning process for the Corca Dhuibhne area”.
Anna Ní Ghallachair, Chairperson of Údarás na Gaeltachta said: “This is an incredibly important initiative for Corca Dhuibhne and its people. Language and early education requirements will be addressed and modern facilities will be provided for training, enterprise and job creation in the area which will stabilise both the community and the language in the area”.
Éamonn Ó Neachtain, Regional Manager for Údarás na Gaeltachta says Comharchumann Forbartha Chorca Dhuibhne Teo and its subsidiaries have a central role in fortifying the Irish language in the Gaeltacht of Corca Dhuibhne, and have a huge effect on the local economy. Ó Neachtain expects this development to improve the number and the standard of services available in the area, and to have a positive impact on the sustainability of the community, basic services and job creation.
Foilsithe ar Gaelport.com
Girls continue to outperform boys in Junior Cert
September 13, 2013
The results repeat traditional trends and confirm the different educational experiences of male and female students.
In post-primary education, girls are more inclined to study at higher level in key subjects and are also more likely to get top grades.
Females accounted for 49pc of the 59,823 Junior Cert candidates this year, according to a gender breakdown by the State Examinations Commission (SEC).
However, they made up 58pc of those taking higher level Irish, 53pc of those taking higher level English, 50pc of those taking higher level maths and more than 50pc of higher level candidates in French, German Spanish, Italian, arts/craft/ design, business studies, music, home economics and religious education.
Childhood
The gender gap is also evident in the results achieved, with girls more likely to notch up ‘ honours’ A, B or C grades.
Girls picked up more As in all higher level papers except maths, Latin and metalwork.
Across the spectrum of the ‘ honours’ ABC grades, the girls went on to overtake the boys in maths and it was only in Latin and metalwork that the boys did better.
The roots of the differences between the sexes in academic engagement goes back to much earlier in their childhood, as illustrated in a recent report based on data gathered in the Growing Up in Ireland study.
The study findings, analysed by Denise Frawley, Selina McCoy and Maeve Thornton of the Economic and Social Research Institute ( ESRI) showed how nine-year-old girls and boys felt differently about school.
They found that girls had slightly higher reading test scores than boys, but boys scored higher in maths, especially at the top end.
This year, 13pc of boys scored an A in higher level maths, compared with 11pc of girls.
Boys are significantly less likely than girls to look forward to school, to like school and to like their teacher, the study also showed.
Boys have higher levels of school absenteeism and are less likely than girls to complete their homework on a regular basis. However, while they reported that gender was a significant predictor of school engagement, they said other factors, such as social background, were crucial in order to distinguish which types of boys and girls were most likely to be disengaged from school.
Kathleen Lynch, Professor of Equality Studies at University College Dublin (UCD), said the real issue in educational inequality was social class, not gender. She said that she had been pressing the Department of Education for years for data relating to matters such as social background and school attendance.
www.independent.ie
Girls take study honours for 3 core Junior Cert subjects
September 13, 2013
Girls are still far more likely than boys to study the three core school subjects to higher level for Junior Certificate.
Figures released by the State Examinations Commission also reveal that girls do better in most of the 26 subjects, with more getting As and honours grades A, B or C) in the vast majority.
Significant improvements in uptake of Irish and maths to higher level were evident again in this week’s results, largely attributed to curricular and other reforms.
But far more female students still chose the tougher exam than boys, with one of the biggest variations being at Junior Cert Irish.
In a school with 50 girls and 50 boys who sat the exams in June, for example, 30 girls but only 22 or 23 boys would have done honours Irish.
Boys still trail girls in doing higher level maths, although half of the 30,155 male students doing the subject sat the higher level in June — just below the 53% of females. Almost equal proportions (41% of girls and 42% of boys) did ordinary level maths, and slightly more boys (7.5%) than girls (6%) sat foundation level papers.
In English, almost 79% of girls but only 68% of boys sitting the higher level papers this year. This meant double the proportions of boys compared to girls taking English at ordinary (29% compared to 14%) and foundation levels (3% as against 1.5%).
The trends continue among other popular languages, with four girls doing higher level French for each one sitting ordinary level, compared to a 3:1 ratio among male students.
For Junior Cert German, studied by just over 10,000, the numbers are very similar, although very slightly more balanced, with 79% of girls and 71% of boys doing higher level.
Of 22 subjects in which figures are provided for higher level, maths, Latin and metalwork were the only ones in which more boys got As, while more boys than girls got honours in just Latin and metalwork.
www.irishexaminer.com
Junior Cert optional oral a popular choice in 2013
September 12, 2013
Yesterday, the 2013 Junior Cert results were announced and much of the discussion in the media focussed on the changes to be made to the new Junior Cert over the next few years.
Gaelport.com have taken a close look at this year’s figures to see if any emerging trends or other interesting information can be gleaned from them, from an Irish language perspective.
Exemptions
With Irish being a core subject of the Junior Certificate syllabus, one would imagine that each year roughly the same number of people would sit Irish, English and Maths, the three core-subjects.
In 2013, 7,261 more students sat English than Irish in their Junior Cert exams.
There could be two reasons for a Junior Cert student not to be included in the number of students sitting the Irish exam, either they have an exemption from studying the subject, or they did not turn up on the day of the exam.
Exemptions from studying Irish can be offered to students for a number of reasons:
• Pupils whose primary education up to 11 years of age was received outside of the Republic of Ireland (RoI)
• Pupils who were previously enrolled in a RoI school but spent a period of at least three years abroad and were at least 11 years of age on re-enrolment;
• Pupils with a Learning Disability or Intellectual Impairment
• Pupils from abroad, who have no understanding of English
The most common cause giving rise to a exemption from studying Irish is one of a learning disability. When the number of students studying other European languages (besides English or Irish) are inspected, it is obvious that more students are studying other languages than Irish. It is difficult to imagine what learning difficulty could prevent you learning Irish but would provide no obstacle to learning a different language. Are exemptions from Irish being used in a cynical manner by principals or students to avoid the study of a core subject?
Optional Oral
A large increase in the number of students choosing the optional oral examination was observed again this year. In 2013, 10,486 pupils (20.15%) chose the optional oral examination, up from 7,388 (14.5%) in 2012. As depicted below, over the past number of years, the number of schools offering the optional Irish oral has increased dramatically.
While at Leaving Certificate level the State Examinations Commission administers all aspects of the oral examination, schools opting to provide the optional oral examination for Junior Cert students assume this responsibility themselves. While both the ASTI and TUI have urged Irish teachers not to take on extra work or responsibility in this regard the number of schools providing this service has risen substantially, which can be attributed to the rise in marks allocated to the oral at Leaving Cert level.
Other subjects through Irish
Consistent with other years, in 2013 approximately 2% of examination candidates took their examinations through Irish in subjects other than Gaeilge.
Foilsithe ar Gaelport.com
Cúntóir Naíonra agus Stiúrthóir Cúnta
September 12, 2013
Rúnaí Scoile
September 12, 2013
Gaelscoil Shliabh Rua have a new website
September 12, 2013
Take a look the the new website of one of the country’s newest schools – Gaelscoil Shliabh Rua. The opening of the school on August 29th was a great achievement for the staff, pupils and parents and we wish them every success.
Cúnamh don bhéal triail
September 12, 2013
New education body stalled: Pledge for single authority by end of year won’t be met
September 12, 2013
A single education body will not meet a Programme for Government commitment to be up and running by the end of the year, the chairman of the Education Committee has warned.
The troubled Education and Skills Authority (ESA) – which had run up a bill of more than £12m by the start of this year – remains stalled by political deadlock.
Talks between Sinn Fein and DUP continue over the shape of the super education authority, which will replace Northern Ireland’s current five education and library boards, as well as the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (CCMS).
At a meeting of the Assembly’s Education Committee yesterday, John McGrath, the Department of Education’s Deputy Secretary, pointed to “slippage” in the ESA timescale.
“Clearly there will be slippage in the 2013 timescale for ESA,” he told the Committee.
The committee’s chairman, North Antrim DUP MLA Mervyn Storey, has said that the proposed body will fall far short of its December 31 target for implementation, set out in the Programme for Government.
The PfG set out a commitment to “make the Education and Skills Authority operational in 2013”.
However, political agreement on the role and powers of the single educational authority appears to be some way off.
The DUP is currently considering a paper from Sinn Fein, which sets out the party’s position on a number of issues which are still stumbling blocks to ESA’s establishment.
The issues still causing political division include:
•Independence of the inspectorate, which inspects standards in schools.
•Who controls the controlled sector, which consists of Northern Ireland’s state schools.
•Issues over Irish medium schools.
•Issues over shared education.
“That’s only some of the issues,” Mr Storey told the Belfast Telegraph yesterday.
“No, ESA will not be up and running by December. ESA will only happen whenever it’s right – whenever there’s an ESA that’s workable and then, and only then, will it come into existence.”
He added: “There’s still issues in relation to the controlled sector and we are still working through the paper sent to us by Sinn Fein over the summer.
“It will take a long period of time to get through that paper and there will be no knee-jerk reaction.”
No one from the Department of Education was available for comment last night.
www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk
