Parliamentary Question addressed to the Minister for Education and Skills

To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the rationale behind the decision to confine early intervention services for children aged two to four years with a diagnosis of autism, including the home tuition scheme, to primary school teachers registered with the Teaching Council to the exclusion of psychologists with specific training and experience in working with early childhood autism; and if he will make a statement on the matter?

Reply:

The Deputy’s question appears to relate to the administration of my department’s Home Tuition Scheme.

The purpose of the Home Tuition scheme is to provide a compensatory educational service for children who, for a number of reasons such as chronic illness, are unable to attend school or for children with a special educational need who are awaiting an educational placement and also to provide early educational intervention for pre-school children with autism.

Children with autism between the ages of 2.5 and 3 are eligible for home tuition. The home tuition continues from their 3rd birthday if no placement in a school based autism early intervention class is available for them. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has a national network of Special Educational Needs Advisors who can assit parents in identifying school placements for their children, if required.

As home tuition takes place outside the usual school structure it is important that home tutors are qualified to provide an educational programme. It is appropriate therefore that the qualification standard in the Home Tuition Scheme generally reflects that required in a school environment.

The qualification requirements for tutors providing home tuition to children have not changed. It remains the case that home tutors should be fully qualified teachers. When it is not possible to recruit a fully qualified teacher then alternative appropriate third level qualifications may be
acceptable.

However, from this year my Department has also required that, in addition to being qualified teachers, tutors must be registered or have applied for registration with the Teaching Council of Ireland. Tutors with acceptable third level qualifications will be eligible to apply for registration. Qualifications in psychology at the required level are acceptable for this purpose.

Accordingly, those whose qualifications were acceptable in the past remain eligible, provided they have applied for registration with the Teaching Council.