Although the provision of remedial teachers to schools was increased last September - to give every school in the State access to remedial teaching - some schools are losing out. So says Billy Fitzpatrick, who is the TUI's education officer. "Many schools in the vocational education sector have been adversely affected by the allocation of extra remedial teachers to schools," he says. "Schools with over 600 students were given an remedial teacher and smaller schools were given half of a remedial teacher - until now, the allocation has been based on need rather than numbers." The problem is, he says, that some smaller schools have a far higher proportion of students with disadvantaged backgrounds than do some larger schools. "We're getting calls from principals telling us that their remedial teaching hours have been reduced - where once they had a full-time remedial teacher, they now have only a halftime teacher. What's happening is outrageous and a waste of resources. Schools that don't have a big need for remedial teaching could use their teachers to target higher level maths or to provide another Leaving Cert course."
According to Brian Flemming, who is principal of Collinstown Park Community College, Dublin, even medium- to large-sized schools are losing out. "We have one remedial teacher for a school population of 700 in an area of high disadvantage," he says. "It's simply not enough. I would like to put more into remedial provision but I can't. Over the last five years, I have lost the equivalent of four full-time teachers, due to the reduction in class contact hours, the creation of additional promotional posts and the change in formula for converting whole-time equivalent into part-time hours."
The results of the TUI's Survey of Remedial Education is expected to throw a lot more light on the issue of remedial teaching. A comprehensive questionaire has been circulated to 500 schools. "It's the first comprehensive survey of remedial education and is long overdue," Fitzpatrick says. The survey, which is due for completion in March, should elicit much vital information. Are, for example, the ex-quota remedial positions filled in accordance with Department of Education and Science regulations? These require teachers to be involved in 12 to 15 hours per week in remedial education, and three hours to testing, diagnosis and contact with parents.
Questions are wide-ranging and include one which will identify the extent to which remedial teachers work as support teachers in the classroom. The use of support teachers is expensive, but in many countries it is regarded as best practice, Fitzpatrick notes.
