Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the panel. I get a little frustrated with the role of SNAs. A large amount of resources have rightly been put into special educational needs. However, we must work together to find the best way to achieve the best outcomes for children with special educational needs. We must make that our sole purpose and ensure that the children get a level playing field. The assistance can range from the provision of a special needs assistant to learning support or resource teaching. The right resources must be provided for a child, which may mean more than care.

I have read many reports on the subject. I have read the report by the National Council for Special Education on its concern about role creep and moving from care to education. We must face up to the fact that we need a combination of care and education, so let us stop fudging. We are spending a fortune on the matter. There are some incredible special needs assistants, some of whom have been educated to junior certificate level while others have a double master's degree. We must discover what is the best model of care and education that will achieve the best outcome for a child. I have examined what happens in other countries and some countries use the teacher assistant model that Ms Lynch mentioned. The teacher is the key person in the classroom because he or she is responsible for the teaching and learning outcomes for a child. A teacher assistant could take care of any care needs and also provide educational support to a child, so we should examine such a scheme. We should also provide an SNA with a pathway to becoming a teacher assistant if he or she so wishes.

There will be extreme cases where the overriding need is care, and it is fine for an SNA to fulfil such a role. As has been said, we must ensure that it does not end up as all care and no education. Both are required. I would like the delegations to answer my question, particularly Ms Teresa Griffin whom I know is faced with the job. I would like to hear their views on the matter.

Earlier Ms Griffin mentioned the danger of labels and, theoretically, I agree with her but not in practice. Labelling may be a pathway to securing resources so parents must be greater than it and the child's esteem must be built up to be greater than the label. I agree with her that labels are a problem for peers. Can she tell me what is the correct way to resolve the matter?