Minister calls on schools to welcome 'all children'

The Minister for Education Mary Hanafin has said that second level schools should "demonstrate their willingness to openly welcome all children."

Ms Hanafin was addressing some 500 secondary school teachers and principals at the annual convention of the Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland (ASTI) in Ennis, Co. Clare, this afternoon.

Ms Hanafin concentrated on the provision of support for children with special needs and those from disadvantaged areas as her central theme at a conference where student misbehaviour, class sizes and the funding of education are top of the agenda.

The Minister said "great strides" had been made "in redressing the State's poor record on educational provision for special needs students at second level."

"We all know that some schools have done phenomenal work in opening their doors to young people with special needs in recent years. But we also know that far too many schools have ducked their responsibilities, suggesting to parents that their child would be better off 'in the school up the road'. Inclusion can only work if everyone plays their part," she said.

"So I lay this challenge to those schools that think that children with special needs would fit in better 'somewhere else'. Open up, make sure that parents know that their child is welcome in your school and I will give you the resources to support them."

She said the Government had invested heavily in the area as there were now more than 1,600 teachers working specifically with students with special needs - compared to 200 a few years ago.

However, despite increased funding to second level schools in recent years, Minister Hanafin said "our education system will only truly be doing right by these young people when every second level school steps up to the mark and ensures that it is genuinely welcoming of all students."

She said she was conscious of the needs of schools which have large numbers of young people with English language needs. She said her department was reviewing this whole area and added that a strategy to meet the needs of non-English-speaking students was being developed.

Ms Hanafin also claimed she had not "lost sight" of the need for increased funding to meet the day-to-day running costs of the country's schools.

She said funding had increased over the last few years with voluntary second level schools with 500 students now receiving €270,000 compared to just over €147,000 in 2000.