This week, I focus on the significant challenges within special education. I cover recently published inspectorate findings, testimonies from school principals, and a detailed report by a group of parents on the deteriorating state of special education. I discuss the lack of adequate resources, bureaucratic hurdles, and the ineffectiveness of new initiatives, emphasizing the dire need for proper support and funding. I also and, finally, how a 13-year-old girl is most likely to be the one to save us.

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Hello?

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Hello.

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You're very welcome to if I were the

minister for education from anseo.net, a

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regular podcast, where I look at the Irish

primary education system and let you know

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what I would do if I were the minister

for education, this is Simon Lewis.

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On this week's show in a fortnight

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where the inspectorate publish

their findings on special education.

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How a group of principals had to go to

the Dole to tell the politicians about

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how it's crumbling and how a group of

parents have published a massive reports.

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On the, a crumbling nature of comms.

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I delve into the world of special

education with a special episode

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on us and how we might all be

saved by a 13 year old girl.

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If you are interested in subscribing

to this podcast and I would love you to

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do so you can do so on Spotify, apple

podcasts, Google podcasts, or your

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favorite app, whatever that might be.

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And you can also watch along on

my YouTube channel anseo.net and

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you can click on subscribe and get

received notifications for that.

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It really helps other

people to find the podcast.

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And I hope this one will be in particular

of interest to any teacher, any parent

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or anyone involved in education.

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If we're looking at special

education, If you are also interested

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in some of my other thoughts in

education, I run a newsletter.

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Where I talk about some other thoughts

on the primary education system such

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as this week, I'll be looking at

Doreena Allen's quest for cooking.

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In schools that she does every year.

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I'll also be looking at some exceptional

posts on Twitter and there's some

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mini CPD at the end of every episode.

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And this week I will be looking at an end

of year countdown game using chat GPT.

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You can read all of my thoughts on the

education system on my Feedly account,

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where I have a number of stories I found

interesting in the various media sources.

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And as this is a special

episode about special education.

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I also want to alert you to an interview

that I did in the last couple of weeks

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with Debbie O'Neill, who is the principal

of a special school that school owned

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in Kremlin in Dublin, where I talked

to her about special education in

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her school and her own thoughts about

the way special education is going.

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I'm just going to play a very short

clip of that to set the scene.

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Speaker 3: you know, it's the

amazing staff that we have here,

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but we are absolute experts in

mild general learning disability.

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We are excellent at the retention

that we have here of children.

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The achievements that we have,

you know, the way that our kids

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will do their leaving Certified

and go on to the world of work.

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I mean, mild schools in general,

there was a survey done a little while

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ago, and it's, it's 70 percent of

children who come from mild schools

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have a job, whereas the average.

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The national average of people who

hold down the job with an intellectual

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disability is six percent, you know,

so we're doing things enormously

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well and we need to be listened to.

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You can listen to the entire interview

with me on Debbie as a separate podcast

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episode, which you can find on anseo.net

or on your favorite podcasting platform.

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So without further ado,

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let's get on with things.

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I'm going to start off with this

article that has nothing to do with

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special education, but I want to

set the scene and because after

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spending millions on the school.

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Miele scheme.

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And I would where every child in

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a hot meal in school every day.

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There are questions over there.

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School lunches.

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Nutritional value.

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And.

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Apart from the fact that I

know I need to say this apart

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from the fact that this scheme.

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Is every other scheme, the

department of education.

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Put in to schools where every school

has to source its own provider.

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And we see this with everything that

comes into school, whether it's your

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insurance policy, whether it's nerdy,

the bus transports, whether it's.

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Nobody seems to organize anything

centrally and everything is done

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privately by every single school.

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So every school, I don't know if

people know this and I'm sure they do.

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If they hear this podcast,

Our public education system.

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Is really strange because every

school is actually a private

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school funded by public money.

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And this is why we don't actually have

a free education, technically a free

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education system and the department

of education provide for education.

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And because of that, they can't

have these wide ranging initiatives.

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So for example, with the school

lunch scheme, every school has to

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try and find their own provider.

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And those providers have to

provide to individual schools.

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There's no sort of em system

where a lot of schools come

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together to get their hot lunches.

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It's all individual and the can't

even come together really on.

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Unless there's some

schemes I don't know about.

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It's the same with everything.

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School book scheme, for

example, every school has to

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source their own school books.

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There isn't a centralized version of that.

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And no two schools are the

same, but anyway, The reason I

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bring this up is not for that.

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The reason is that the department

of education has said after hearing

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reports that the nutritional values

in these lunches, aren't up to scratch

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the responsibility for monitoring that

is the schools, because of course the

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schools are sourcing these companies

to bride, and I'd like to start this

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episode by thanking the department

of education for adding the new.

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Role that I have on top of all

the other roles that I have the

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principle as a nutritionist.

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So if you need any nutritional advice from

me, Ah, because I'm suitably qualified,

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according to the department of education,

you just come to me with your diet plan

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and I'll let you know if it's any good,

but the reason I'm starting the episode

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with this is because the government

not only have provided me with this

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wonderful title of being a nutritionist.

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They've also bestowed a wonderful title.

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On to teachers.

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And S and A's and they have

announced the establishment.

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I have a support service and

educational therapy support service.

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Now.

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Just the important word here

is support, not therapy.

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Because I think what the press release

from the government is that people will

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think parents will think that schools will

now provide therapists and specifically

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occupational therapy and speech and

language therapy to children, the school.

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But no, remember the word is support.

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And let me scroll down this

article, this press release.

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She has provided, she

has managed to secure.

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Two and a half million Euro.

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In funding.

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After 39 therapists and oh, they also have

behavior practitioners, five of those.

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And what these people will do is that

they will provide support to teachers

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on destinies to provide occupational

therapy, speech, and language therapy

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and behavioral therapy to children.

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Now, what they aren't doing is

providing any extra resources

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to the schools for this.

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And what these 39 people

will do for the five.

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What is it?

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550,000 children in the in the country.

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Let's say 10% of them will need as speech,

language therapy, occupational therapy,

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which has probably so 39 therapists

would provide all this for 55,000 pupils.

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They won't see them.

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They won't even talk directly to them.

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What they will do is they

will advise teachers and SNS.

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Things to do and they will

focus mainly on movement breaks.

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Because movement breaks are all the

children with speech and language therapy.

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Speech and language and

occupational needs we'll need all

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they need is a bit of movement.

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I'm sure schools wouldn't

have a clue how to do that.

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Would they?

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So ultimately.

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Another initiative without any

substance and teachers and SNS are

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going to add occupational therapists,

speech, and language therapists and

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behavior therapists to their ever

growing role of in the costume.

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There are no extra resources

I said, which means that.

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Essentially this isn't

going to work really?

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Is it.

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It's it's interesting how it

was reported in the media.

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As a sort of Almost a copy of

the press release in a way.

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But in reality.

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We can't expect.

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We can't expect this to work.

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If we don't fund these things properly

they're not going to work and we're

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going to, we're just essentially putting

a sticky plaster over a situation.

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That's just going to cost even

more money if we don't solve it.

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When I look at some of the countries

I've visited or I've had teachers

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visiting where they have these

services on site there's in Finland.

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Almost every school has a S a site,

a school psychologist on site.

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In Valencia and Spain, where as

some of my staff went to visit

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to learn about what they don't.

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They have.

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It's funny.

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I'm laughing because I can't believe

these things have to be able to happen.

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They have an on school psychologist and

they also have a senior psychologist

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available when the onsite psychologist

is, has a more complex case.

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It's just.

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It's amazing.

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There's other countries are doing and

it's these wraparound services that we're

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lacking and we are absolutely piling on.

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Piling on all this stuff.

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Onto schools.

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Who don't have the expertise.

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We are really, I'll tell you

what we're really good at.

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We're really good at educating children.

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We are really good at caring

for children and as much as we

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can, but we aren't therapists.

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We aren't specialists in occupational

therapy in speech and language

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therapy and behavioral supports in.

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Dietician work, but it seems

that all these things are

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just being landed on schools.

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And based on I think, and I could

be wrong on this based on the public

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perception that we've nothing bad like

that we're that this is an easy job.

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This is just a job.

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That we can land it on

because we barely work.

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This idea that sharp.

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What are they doing all day?

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They only work half days.

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So they just pile on this sort of extra

stuff that we're not qualified for.

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And it's not.

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It's not going to work.

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And we can see why it's

not going to work because.

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Parents are saying it's not working.

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We're seeing a huge rise in mental

health issues with a young people.

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And this group here, families

for the reform of comms have

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essentially been working.

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For the last few years, trying to insist.

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That better services are given to

children with mental health issues

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and they have provided this wonderful

report which is the experience

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of comms, a family perspective.

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And I'm just going to go through

and their executive summary.

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It's a really big

document, 117 pages long.

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And I just.

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I don't have the time to go through it

with you on this podcast, because we have

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so much to cover, but in their executive

summary, they've gone through the results.

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And it basically says, some of the key

facts here, 92% of all of the respondents

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said that they have felt their child's

mental health deteriorated during the

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referral process to comms alone and 43%

took additional steps to try and get

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their child's referral to comms existed.

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And steps included getting a private

diagnosis, seeking political support from

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local politicians, going to AA and E and

not mentioning an existing diagnosis.

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That's generally awesome.

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Just for those of you who don't know.

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One of the unwritten rules for parents

who need mental health support for

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their child is not to mention autism

because if you have, or if you have a

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diagnosis for autism, You can forget.

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Being supported by cons.

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It's a bizarre kind of thing because most

children with a diagnosis of autism will,

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at some point have mental health needs.

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And comms is the only public

service that will give that to you.

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It's absolutely shocking.

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And obviously the last thing they're

going public with their experience at

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the fight for services has to continue

hot to continue in the time period

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subsequently spent on the waiting list

where 69% of people saw private support.

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39% of respondents had to

bring their child to AA.

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It's just shocking.

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It makes terrible reading.

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And if you couldn't afford to go private.

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You were in serious bother on

the article goes on and on.

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I have a link to the entire article.

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Which is on the newsletter or in,

on the website on chart dot Nash.

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But it's awful.

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It's really awful.

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And it's a shot.

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It's a, it's an off suit.

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It's a scandal.

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Really?

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I think this is special.

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Education is going to be the scandal

of our times in much the same way.

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The scandal of the 20th century was the

abuse of the Catholic church on children.

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And I think the 21st century,

we're going to look back at the

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abuse we have that the services.

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The lack of services for children with

additional needs and how we are failing.

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So many our children.

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With additional needs.

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And no spin doctoring and no.

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Press release is going to rescue.

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The government from what they've

been doing for the last decade and

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a half to children, traditionally,

it's a service that started off.

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Quite well.

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Is being turned slowly, but surely.

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Into this megaliths of bureaucracy, where

children, with addition to where they're

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spending more money stopping services

for a dish for additional needs than they

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are at on actually helping the children.

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It's an absolute shambles and we

know this even at the very basics of

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levels when children come to school.

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They are already set up to fail

because let me move on to the

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next article to show you this.

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I remember when I started off in teaching.

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Sorry.

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As a principal, even that if you had

a child coming into junior infants

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who needed extra support, you could

get that support before they started.

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You would guess that they would

get their diagnosis from a

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psychologist or from a service.

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And if it recommended SNA or recommended

support hours, they would be in there.

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They would be in place when the

child landed in junior infants, but

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in 2017, This completely changed.

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In fact, I'd go as far back as two times a

year before that, when it comes to special

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ed special needs assistance, things

changed that you didn't automatically.

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I get a special needs assistant,

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very basic level for what we're

known as resource hours A child.

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A child would no longer be entitled

to resource hours or support

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hours at when the model changed.

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The sat allocations model

changed where school was given

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a bulk of hours based on some.

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Random algorithm, which nobody quite

understands and nobody quite gets

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big, but we do know as schools.

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That it certainly isn't enough hours.

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And essentially, unless the hours are

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So if you were a developing school you

certainly aren't getting enough hours.

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Even now but even then you were

still, it was cementing a 15%

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cost that was made in 2011.

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So essentially 90, over 90% of

schools and probably more now are

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not receiving enough support hours

for children because of this model.

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And this year it was exacerbated further

dash a, the department of education.

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Weren't getting data on complex needs of

children, whatever complex needs means.

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It's a word that it's a

term that's coming to the.

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Parlance at the moment.

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And I'm not quite sure

exactly what it means.

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But my guess is it's children with the

diagnosis of something, but children

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are not getting are not getting the

supports if they have complex needs.

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Certainly at least until second class.

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And even then that's that's pretty shaky.

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In terms of very shaky data, because

that's just based on their scores of

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their literacy and numeracy tests, which

again are very shaky tests because they

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only tell us they only tell a small

story about where a child is at, but

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effectively every child in this country

is now is now getting sorry, every

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school in this country is getting the re.

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What were known as the resource

hours or the support hours based

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on really re not even shaky data

junk data is what I would say.

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And it is no wonder not.

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It took me a while to get to this,

that hundreds of schools appealed their

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cuts to their learning support hours.

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And I don't understand why.

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Is it Carla, Brian, I assume it's Carta.

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Brian who's written yet.

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Carla Brian who wrote this article.

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Coats is in inverted commas

because it's certainly was cots.

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And of the hundreds and hundreds

of schools that applied at appealed

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for their coats and 120 of them.

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120 to go to.

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A thousand additional hours now.

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Look at that.

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That sounds oh that, that might,

again, you have to look at spin.

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You have to look at headlines.

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You have to examine them a thousand

additional hours between 120 schools is

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less than 10 hours a school on average.

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That's not a lot.

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At all, by any stretch of the not changing

that's not even two fifths of a post.

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That doesn't mean that many teeth, that,

that doesn't mean that many children are

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getting very much as a result of that.

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And it also does.

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And.

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How many schools appealed, especially

now how many schools didn't appeal,

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because they didn't see the point,

because if you look at the data

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and the data is out there because.

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The national principal's forum have

questioned schools about this, and

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they've got the dot on it and you can

find that on principal's forum.org.

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Most schools didn't bother appealing

because of the bureaucracy and

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arduous nature of the appeals process.

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And I'll tell you a little bit

about the appeals process, because

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we know a little bit more about it.

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And this is what you have to do.

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If you want to appeal your cost.

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In inverted commas, I don't even why I did

the quotation marks cause they are codes.

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But I think it was 75% of schools

didn't bother because they didn't

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think they'd be successful.

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And they're good.

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And they're very good.

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Reason after that, because

statistically less than 10%.

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Of appeals are successful, but let

me go through the process because we

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know what it is now for these appeals.

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So let's say your school, that

feels they got caught and they.

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Gotta cost or don't have adequate hours

for the growing needs of their children.

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You go onto this portal.

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NCSC dot.

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IE.

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And you go to the portal and

you fill in a form and not form.

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In my case was 26 pages long.

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The bigger the school, the more, and

the more pages will be, but anything

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between 10 and 35 pages where you

have to charge every single child.

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Child's needs and how your school

is trying to cover them in the

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small amount of hours that you get.

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And you feel like that form, it

took my school five days to do that.

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Other schools reported, we took around the

same amount of time and you upload that.

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To some portal.

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At the NCSE.

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Okay.

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And.

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Dash form.

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Is examined by somebody.

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We don't know who the somebody is.

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They don't know your school.

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They don't know the children

because you're not allowed

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to say who the children are.

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You have to code those.

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And they look at it and they, their job

is to try and find any reason to not.

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Except your appeal.

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Any reason whatsoever.

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And it's really easy to find a

reason not to give that appeal.

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And I won't go into all the

reasons because there's so many

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of them, it's set up to help.

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It's set up to help you fail it.

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Isn't there to help you.

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It's set up to help them fail

or they don't know your school.

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They don't care what your school is.

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They're looking for any reason to say.

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You have not provided sufficient

evidence to support your appeal.

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And that's what most schools, gosh.

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And in some ways, They're really

lucky that they were told, off you go.

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Because we're not bothered at looking at

your school ready because if you take,

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if you were successful, What you then.

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I got as a prize.

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For being successfully.

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Showing that you have

been under resourced is.

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You will get a full desk review.

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So that would mean that you would

have to spend another five to 10 days.

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Doing getting proving that

you're under under resourced

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and you would, might get it.

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You.

385

I think you might get a visit.

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I think you did get a visit from

someone in the NTSC who would re would

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comb through your application and then

determine that you might need a couple of.

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A couple of extra hours a week.

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It's almost like it's.

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Not that it's almost that it is

exactly what is happening here is

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they're doing everything in their

power to put people, to put schools

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off from applying for additional.

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Hours for the children and their

school, they make it so difficult.

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So as to make it.

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To make it just, you don't have time.

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We don't print schools do not have

time to spend 10 days of their

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school year trying to prove that

they don't have enough resources.

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We know we should be trusted.

399

To be able to say, here's what we need.

400

And I, my, my.

401

Belief.

402

Is that these ad.

403

These things are being deliberately

pot in place to effectively

404

discourage schools from applying.

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For the supports that are needed

for schools, because it's just.

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It's just impossible.

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To satisfy them.

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And it's depressing.

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For schools.

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And as I said, car, Carla Brian's article

here just goes through the information.

411

And it's interesting.

412

To see.

413

Dosh, car people like as I am,

or they're saying that they are

414

they also are critical lavish.

415

But again, the department of

education, they just have the.

416

They just have the spin to say,

Ah, there's no perfect model.

417

What can we do?

418

Do you know if they spent

the amount of time and money?

419

That they are spending on stopping

these resources from coming in.

420

This is really easy.

421

Aren't it is a very small country.

422

They have over 3,200 members

of staff in the NCSC.

423

Now there are five sorry.

424

There's only 4,000 schools in the country.

425

And 3 8, 3, 3 and a half thousand

of those are primary skills.

426

And they have 200 NTSC

people who could gash.

427

I don't know, whatever 30, 40, 50

schools each other, and they could.

428

Easily determine what needs are there

or they could trust that schools it's.

429

I mentioned this before I

was on the hard shoulder.

430

With Kira and Coda, he and we talked

and he talked to, he said, he mentioned

431

the whole idea about tax returns.

432

You're trusted to put in

your tax returns properly.

433

And if something looks a bit funny

a little red light will appear

434

in your tax office and someone

will come and do an audit on you.

435

The same could be done for special

education, but the truth is.

436

They know.

437

They know, they can't afford the

amount of money that will be needed to

438

support children with additional needs.

439

And therefore it might be cheaper to run

systems like this that prevented children

440

from getting the support they need.

441

They're only fooling themselves because

of course, as we know, if we don't.

442

Provide early intervention here.

443

The, this is going to come back

at them when the children become

444

adults and require the supports

of adult therapeutic services.

445

And so on.

446

But anyway, I'll move on because.

447

What are we doing about it?

448

Some might say even the

inspectors, RM aren't too happy.

449

And this article is actually, the

headline doesn't really tell you

450

much about the report, but even

the inspectors are critical of

451

how we're doing special education.

452

This report is basically saying we

don't have enough special classes

453

which is which we have the perennial

story of the family who sit on

454

the cover of a newspaper of UGA.

455

Eh, one of the newspapers and with

their child who's every day is saying,

456

when am I going to go to school?

457

When am I going to school?

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Parents saying, oh, I, Y I wish.

459

I just dream of a day that I can

put on my child's school uniform

460

and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

461

But he doesn't have a place

and I'm trying to explain it

462

to him and all the rest of it.

463

And we hear this story every single

year and we get the same results where

464

a local politician will come to the

rescue of that particular family.

465

And.

466

Last minute things are done.

467

Children are thrown onto buses to

travel for hours every day to get into

468

a special school or a special class.

469

And it's just a mess every single year.

470

And that's just warden mess.

471

Really.

472

And then we have to look at the

idea of special classes and are they

473

the solution that we're supposed to

be doing is this is a very kind of

474

Irish solution to an Irish problem

where we pretend to have an inclusive

475

education system, because we allow

children into the same school building.

476

But don't provide any supports that are

needed for children with additional needs.

477

And then who's to blame only the

schools, because obviously they

478

can't add, they can't work miracles.

479

Either, if we're going to be doing

things, we need to do things properly.

480

And unfortunately.

481

We're not doing things properly,

getting a diagnosis as this parent

482

says is only half the battle and

the inspectors are quite critical of

483

how we're doing special education.

484

And, it's just not great.

485

It's not great at all.

486

And not only are the inspectorate claiming

that special education is falling apart.

487

A group of principals went to the

doll and they spoke to what I hear

488

was the largest group of politicians

to ever grace, the AAV room.

489

And what they did was they outlined a

number of issues, including funding,

490

including the workload of teaching

principals and principals in general.

491

But I'm going to go to focus

on the briefing document.

492

They provided here on special

education because we're focusing on

493

special education, but basically I

just wanted to go through the points

494

here and it's the Chronicle under

resourcing of special education needs.

495

I'll be a bit of repetition here.

496

The number of children with

special needs in primary level

497

has increased by 56% since 2017.

498

That's shocking.

499

And yet very few.

500

I would say fewer than 10% of schools

have increased their special education.

501

Provision in their schools.

502

Special needs assistance and sat

allocation has been frozen since then.

503

Before 2011 resource allocation

for special education was

504

based on individual need.

505

Since 2017, Don Iceland, the case.

506

In 2010, 15% of special education

teaching resources where coach

507

they've never, ever been restored.

508

In 2022.

509

A new allocation model was introduced.

510

And essentially it got rid

of complex needs as a model.

511

Sorry, that should be 20, 24.

512

I think.

513

From this year.

514

And.

515

It effectively.

516

The only measure of a child's need

is how they perform in a very.

517

Niche test the just the English and

maths ability on a particular day.

518

And it doesn't, it's

just as it's junk data.

519

It's now a requirement that children

with diagnosed needs are obliged

520

to be given support from those

allocations, which has a say.

521

May they may not even fall under

just because you have an additional

522

need doesn't mean you're not

good at literacy and numeracy.

523

And I've said.

524

This.

525

I know some of the support groups would

agree that just because you have a complex

526

need or an additional need doesn't mean

that you're not good at English and maths.

527

In some ways, I just feel it's really

disrespectful that the that's the

528

way they're measuring these things.

529

There's a chronic lack of

availability of professional staff

530

to undertake testing and diagnoses.

531

And I just, at the moment, if you want a

private assessment, you could be waiting

532

up to a year for a private assessment.

533

These.

534

That's how bad things will become.

535

The department is claims that cannot

measure current need requirements

536

because they don't have any of the

data they're refusing to take the

537

data because you don't have the data.

538

If you don't have the information.

539

How are you supposed to provide for us?

540

You can't, you can claim ignorance.

541

We didn't know.

542

We don't have the data.

543

It's very clever in some ways.

544

However school leaders do know the

needs in their school, but access

545

the resources required we could, and

schools could report these needs on

546

the department for the departments

are using the primary online database

547

system, but the departments are

unwilling to collect data in that manner.

548

The purpose of the allocation models to

distribute special education teaching

549

hours across mainstream classes in

4,000 schools, to ensure that resources

550

are allocated at the right time to the

right place so that these hours are

551

available to schools to match their

identified, need to support their pupils.

552

We know that's not happening.

553

The allocation criteria is have

changed from the five criteria,

554

which one of those was complex needs.

555

One of those is gender, which

is a good thing at that.

556

They've got rid of that, but there's

a, but it's down to three under.

557

Which is Baffling.

558

And none of the mainstream.

559

Special education and as pupils can be

recognized until at least second class,

560

because that's the first time that you

put in their literacy and numeracy scores.

561

To seek additional support.

562

I've said this to you, this

exceptional appeal or a whole school.

563

SNA review their arduous and largely

on successful schools are obliged to

564

request a review of their set allocation

in light of exceptional circumstances.

565

So you have to, you ha essentially, if you

want an increase in your resources, which

566

every school I would argue probably needs.

567

They have the data here.

568

360 schools applied for an exceptional

569

forward for review and 39 were

actually application for an increase.

570

So by 10% of schools were successful

and I would guarantee you that

571

99% it needed it of the 78 special

needs appeals that were made.

572

And the reason why.

573

By the way some of you

might go, why aren't he 78?

574

Because schools are petrified.

575

Petrified that they will

actually be decreased.

576

And if they apply for a special

needs assistance appeal and that

577

that Petra fication is very real

because schools are already working.

578

An absolute skeletal staff staffing.

579

And I know that before you make an appeal,

you can request the scene as to coming.

580

Coming to your school to see.

581

Should you go for an appeal.

582

So before you even put the appeal in,

you go in and from personal experience

583

and I'm from listening to other people's

experiences, you're pretty much told.

584

Yeah.

585

There's not a hope in hell.

586

So that's why 70 H is the low number.

587

But even though 78 people

as schools that did appeal.

588

Only 16 of those were old pals.

589

A tiny percentage.

590

And the reality is that schools in

schools as a case, loads are fluid.

591

So you don't, nothing is ever solid here.

592

And teachers do prioritize and the

needs as they need as they're needed.

593

There isn't a child that comes in

every day with exactly the same needs.

594

You're constantly shifting and flowing.

595

Around the needs that

are there at the time.

596

And it's just, it's hugely problematic.

597

And this is going on.

598

I feel it's worth carrying on with this.

599

This is possibly the most important

briefing documents that has it.

600

That is in any politician's

hands right now.

601

So I am going to carry on with it, even

though I've gone over the 30 minutes,

602

the government don't have the data to

quantify the scale or store shortage.

603

Of Sam provision in primary

schools, it could easily be

604

rectified by using this pod system.

605

And I, if nothing else

happens, I think this is it.

606

This is a solution naps which

is a psychological service.

607

Remember I said in Finland, every

school has access to a psychologist.

608

Even the smallest schools have

a psychologist, one to two

609

days a week, bigger skills.

610

And when I say big schools, I'm

looking at 300 pupil schools, have

611

an onsite psychologist, an onsite

social worker, an onsite nurse to deal

612

with with these wraparound services.

613

And this goes into a bit of detail on us.

614

In January, 2024.

615

It's only a few months ago, school

principals are still being charged

616

with completing the sole education

component of the assessment of me

617

process, which we are absolutely not.

618

Qualified to do.

619

And it makes.

620

It really is questionable about how

legal it is for us to be determining.

621

The needs, the educational

needs of children to the HSE.

622

We are not psychologists.

623

We are not psychiatrists.

624

We are teachers and we have absolutely

no qualifications to say what the we

625

work from the Advice of psychologists,

if we can even get them and very

626

few of the children go drawing.

627

Phew.

628

Number of children who present

to us in special education in

629

schools do not have a diagnosis.

630

In fact, we have the system the continuum

of support, where we have costumes

631

support at the first level, which

doesn't require anything other than

632

that, this child needs a little bit of

extra help in the costume school support,

633

which is when a child might need the

input of a special education teacher.

634

They definitely don't need an.

635

A diagnosis for that

again, most children don't.

636

And then you have the school support

pulse, which is where external

637

agencies are involved in the child.

638

And given that most of those

services don't exist, essentially.

639

It's not really very much

different to school support.

640

And effectively, most of the

children that are getting support

641

in schools aren't are being.

642

Are being done through Goodwill

and gastric, as I always say.

643

And once the data is

gathered and quantified.

644

They say here.

645

If we gave them the data, you would

have an accurate Sam profile for

646

each school where the HSC and NCSC

provide the support strategically at.

647

For those children and it could be

done without, and unfortunately all the

648

money is being put into the NCSC who

have no data on children on affect you.

649

What they're just basically a bunch of.

650

I don't know, consultants.

651

Yeah, for want of a better word.

652

As I said, at the very start they put

in these tertiary nine therapy support,

653

people who won't even look at the

children won't even see the children.

654

They're just going to advise teachers how

to do random movement breaks on children.

655

They're pumping the money into the

wrong places, and it's really terrible.

656

This act comes from a briefing

document that was given to

657

all the politicians that went.

658

Two.

659

The to, to the room and.

660

I think.

661

I'd like to hope that

something will come from us.

662

It's that the politicians

have the information now.

663

And that's every party.

664

And in fairness, Holly, Karen's the

leader of the social Democrats as

665

spoke in the doll about watch what

her advisor had learned from this.

666

And, it was terribly depressing.

667

And to hear the response from

me, whole Martin, the Tanisha.

668

Who I would argue is still probably

the best minister for education

669

we've hired in the last 20 odd years.

670

But as the response was really

depressing, he decided, rather

671

than actually, tackle the issues,

he decided to play it political

672

football with it and start slagging

off Holly Karen's for being doomsday.

673

And yet.

674

Do you know?

675

Sure.

676

You don't see the other side of the coin

and started listing school lunches as

677

I don't know how great everything is.

678

It's really depressing.

679

We have a massive problem.

680

Every body recognizes it.

681

We've seen it from the parents.

682

We've seen it from the inspectors.

683

We've seen it from the principles

and we even see it from.

684

A 13 year old girl, Kara Dermody,

who has been campaigning for

685

the last couple of years.

686

For better services for autistic children,

she has two brothers who are autistic.

687

And her family have been fighting.

688

For services for her brothers, but

not only for her brothers for all

689

children with additional needs.

690

And I know the focus for Kara and

her family is autism, but I think

691

they've expanded that to children

with additional needs in general and.

692

Look.

693

Is it going to be the case?

694

That.

695

Kara Dermody.

696

A 13 year old girl who I'm sure

has enough to be doing in her life.

697

Being a 13 year old girl without having

to go to the trouble of being the face.

698

Of saving the education system

of saving special education.

699

I don't, I think she's

a wonderful young woman.

700

Who.

701

I would imagine it doesn't want

to be standing outside the door.

702

Doesn't want to be going on the radio.

703

Talking to very kind I've listened

to some of the interviews and

704

people are very kind to her.

705

I sure she doesn't want to be

repeating herself over and over again.

706

I'm sure.

707

At some point, it's going to get

depressing for her, where she's going in.

708

Where all these politicians want

to have a photo with Carra Darmody.

709

Who have had her Assurant.

710

great.

711

Aren't you wonderful.

712

Effectively patronize the the

patronized her and say, oh, we will.

713

I don't give tokenistic stuff.

714

I'm very interestingly, one

of the tokenistic stuff.

715

Things that we're doing on it though,

actually in fairness to car's dad.

716

He called it out.

717

The family were actually privately

given money by the HSE for the

718

two the two brothers there.

719

And he called it out saying that I didn't

know that I was getting a privilege

720

here, and this is essentially to get me

and my family to shut off essentially.

721

And he's called it out

and it was reported.

722

But Is it.

723

Is it, that is it the fact that our

special education system rests on the

724

protests of a 13 year old girl, instead

of the principals who have very well.

725

At outlining the solutions to this

issue, to the inspectors who have

726

shown the shortcomings of the system

to the parents who are talking

727

about the mental health supports.

728

And these are only three things that

have just come in the last fortnight.

729

There are so many other groups

out there who have gone in to

730

talk about special education.

731

I didn't include inclusion Ireland

who had who had a meeting or briefing

732

as well in the last couple of weeks.

733

I do.

734

You know what?

735

I, wasn't going to mention them

because it nearly feels pointless

736

because it was pointless.

737

I know the representative bodies

also went in the IPP and the ITO.

738

Probably part of each other

on the back for a job.

739

Well done.

740

It, they've, they're not seeing what's

going on Kara and her family and the

741

principals and the inspectors and the

families who are out there who have to

742

fight this every single day on the ground.

743

And do we have to, as

I say, Is Cara Darmody.

744

Somebody's going to be the equivalent

of the gratitude Thornburg for the

745

climate catastrophe or the Malala

use of, for the for the plight

746

of Muslim girls in education.

747

Do we have, does it, do we

have to have a poster child?

748

To save us.

749

At to save special education Ahrens.

750

I don't think it's fair

that's going to be the case.

751

And what I salute Kara for

everything that she's doing.

752

I just wish.

753

I wish it didn't have to be that way.

754

It's not right.

755

That all rests on a 13 year old girl.

756

And for children with additional

needs to gash what they require

757

and what they're entitled to.

758

Because.

759

If we don't.

760

We know what the issues are.

761

We know.

762

What the solutions are.

763

And it shouldn't take something like this.

764

To solve it.

765

And if I were the minutes for

education, And even fives the T shock.

766

I would I be very happy to meet this

wonderful 13 year old girl and shake

767

her hands and have a photo with her and

tell her how wonderful she is and how.

768

And my aunt, all the

things are going to do.

769

I'd be doing it.

770

I'd be actually listening to

all the voices that have been

771

talking to you for the last few

weeks, for the last few years.

772

And solve the problem.

773

It's as simple as that.

774

I just don't understand why they won't.

775

That's all I'm going to say this

week, and this is we're coming to

776

the summer holidays for most people.

777

It's ironically in the, in July we

are moving into the summer provision,

778

which was set up in a way after COVID.

779

It used to be just for

special classes in schools.

780

It's now expanded.

781

To children with complex needs, as

a number of children will be getting

782

an extra few weeks of scooting

as ironically as a reward for

783

that, the department of education.

784

In their wisdom decided to make

a cot to the funding for that.

785

It just tells its own story

and sums everything up.

786

Anyway.

787

I hope you've enjoyed I don't

know how you've enjoyed this one.

788

Ah, but I hope you've enjoyed listening

to this and sort of summary of the

789

last two weeks in special education.

790

And as I said, please subscribe

to the podcast on your favorite

791

podcast, please tell a teacher about.

792

And do you know, what would

you mind reviewing it as well?

793

Look, thanks so much for listening.

794

All the very best take care.

795

Bye bye.