[ad_1]
All full-time third level students will receive a payment of € 250 next year to help offset progress towards greater online learning.
It’s one of several education measures that will be featured in the 2021 Budget, including hiring an additional 565 teachers to bring the pupil-to-teacher ratio at the elementary level to a record low.
It is understood that the financial aid package for third-level students has a total cost of 50 million euros and will be delivered to students who have paid the € 3,000 tuition or are beneficiaries of the Susi scholarships.
Additionally, more generous postgraduate grants will be announced, with maximum payments ranging from € 2,000 to € 3,500. The income threshold for eligibility for these grants will also increase, from € 31,500 to now € 54,240.
A wide-ranging review of the Susi scholarship scheme is also likely to be announced that will examine whether adequate supports are available for part-time students and others.
Additional capital funding is also envisaged for the third tier, in the region of € 15 million, for structural adjustments to buildings that were required due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
These measures will be included in an allocation of 3.3 billion euros for the Department of Continuing and Higher Education led by Simon Harris.
Other measures include funding an additional 5,000 third-tier locations to accommodate population growth and “exceptional demand” arising from the calculated ratings process.
On the other hand, the Minister of Education Norma Foley will announce that next year 565 more teachers will be hired.
They include 300 ordinary primary teachers, plus more than 265 required second-level positions needed to cope with demographic pressures.
This will reduce the student to teacher ratio at the elementary level from an average of 26 students to each teacher (26: 1) to 25 students to each teacher (25: 1).
This will be the lowest allocation rate ever at the primary level. This move is likely to cost around € 14 million over the course of a full year.
Overall, the budget for primary, secondary and tertiary education is expected to exceed € 11 billion, the highest level ever recorded.
Most of the funding will go towards the salaries of thousands of special needs teachers and assistants.
Commenting before the budget announcement, the Irish National Teachers Organization said it had made reducing at least one student per year in the staffing calendar a key goal.
“Driven by the support of concerned teachers, parents and members of the public, more than 20,000 emails were sent to politicians in just three short weeks,” said a spokesperson.
“Tackling our large class sizes is imperative if we want to keep our schools open and move towards the EU average of 20 in a classroom. The Irish average is 25 and one in five pupils learns in a classroom of thirty or more pupils in this country. “
[ad_2]