Teacher Education for Inclusion: Ireland

TE4I Project

Department of Education and Skills

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Irish Education System

• 3,000+ primary schools (105 special schools)

• c. 500,000 primary pupils

• 700+ post-primary schools

• c. 350,000 post-primary students

• c. 60,000 teachers

Department of Education and Skills

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Inclusion in Ireland• The inclusion of all pupils with diverse needs and their

equal access to and participation in an appropriate education is a main goal of national policy and practice.

• Basic principle: children with additional learning needs should, as far as possible, be enabled to receive their education in mainstream schools with pupils who do not have such needs.

• A continuum of provision is prescribed although the number of pupils with additional learning needs enrolling in mainstream schools is increasing.

• A range of supports is provided to aid the full inclusion of pupils with SEN, pupils from disadvantaged, minority and other groups, and pupils for whom English is an additional language.

Department of Education and Skills

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SEN Placement

<5% of school population diagnosed with SEN (c. 850,000 aged 4-18 )

>83% of SEN pupils are in mainstream schools

<15% of SEN pupils are in special schools

The remaining pupils are in special classrooms in mainstream schools

Department of Education and Skills

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Pupils with English as an Additional Language

c. 50,000 EAL pupils in primary and post-primary schools

“Newcomers are more likely to attend urban schools and those already catering for more disadvantaged student groups.” (ESRI, 2009)

• Guiding educational principles– Inclusive mainstream school environment that affirms linguistic,

ethnic and cultural diversity– Equality of curriculum access– Language instruction– Parental involvement– Connection with pupils’ first language and culture– High aspirations and expectations

Department of Education and Skills

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Social Inclusion

• Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) - the Action Plan for Educational Inclusion

• Support for designated schools with larger populations of pupils from disadvantaged social and economic backgrounds or from the Travelling Community

Department of Education and Skills

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ITE Providers

• 5 Primary ITE providers: 3 year BEd

• 7 Post-primary ITE providers: 1 year HDE

• 7 Post-primary specialist subject ITE providers (e.g. Art, Music, Physical Education)

Department of Education and Skills

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ITE Providers

Irish universities exercise a good deal of academic autonomy on the nature of ITE. However, they tend to be very pro-active in ensuring that teacher education courses are responsive to change. The gradual shift towards a more inclusive education system has been paralleled by changes in the content and methodologies of teacher education courses to promote school-based inclusive practices.

Department of Education and Skills

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ITE Providers All teachers are expected to be able to work in

inclusive settings teaching pupils with a range of diverse needs. Institutions which provide ITE embed inclusive education practices throughout the teaching experience as well as providing a variety of optional and mandatory modules related to the education of pupils with diverse needs. ITE providers have developed, or are developing, their own competences and are aware of the European Reference Framework.

Department of Education and Skills

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Main Challenges

• ensuring teachers have the capacity to create and maintain truly inclusive classrooms

• preparing teachers to provide full access to the curriculum for students with SEN

• preparing teachers for the language and cultural differences of large numbers of EU and non-EU nationals who have immigrated to Ireland

• preparing teachers to support social inclusion.

Initial Responses to the Profile• “The document is a timely and very welcome

starting point for discussion among policy makers, teachers, teacher educators and curriculum development experts.”

• “A human rights approach to inclusive education is welcomed.”

• “I like the competency approach – versus ‘standards’. What we say about practice is not always reflected in what we do.”

• “Underpinning philosophy of the document aligns well with the Irish approach to teacher education.”

Department of Education and Skills

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Department of Education and Skills

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The Teaching Council:• Codes of Professional Conduct for Teachers

which include :Standards of Teaching, Knowledge, Skill and Competence

• Strategy for the Review and Accreditation of Programmes of Teacher Education

• Draft policy on the Continuum of Teacher Education

Department of Education and Skills: Reconceptualisation of ITE programmes

Department of Education and Skills

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