asked the Minister for Education (1) if a national teacher has recently been appointed to the position of head master of the Marino Technical School by the City of Dublin Vocational Education Committee; (2) if any applications for the post were received from fully qualified teachers already in the vocational education service; (3) are vocational teachers eligible for appointments in national schools; (4) will he state the number of national teachers engaged part-time in vocational schools in the Saorstát; and will the Minister withhold his sanction to the appointment referred to, and refer it back to the City of Dublin Vocational Committee for consideration.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Head-mastership of Technical School.
The answers to parts (1) and (2) of the Deputy's question are in the affirmative. In reply to part (3), vocational teachers are eligible for appointments in national schools provided they possess the necessary qualifications. In reply to part (4), the number of national teachers engaged in part-time teaching in vocational schools in the Saorstát, according to the records in the Department, appears to be 25, but there is not sufficient information available to supply an exact figure. The Vocational Education Committee's proposal is at present before the Department and is receiving careful consideration.
Will the Minister give any sort of promise or undertaking that, in future, he will confine appointments of this character to teachers in vocational schools? My principal object in putting down the question was to secure that, in the case of future appointments, the Minister would consider the claims of vocational teachers. He must be aware that there are only 600 or 700 of these teachers in the country and that they have very little opportunity of promotion. I am sure the Minister will agree that, when a vacancy of this character occurs, these teachers are entitled to some consideration. Will the Minister undertake that, in the case of all future appointments of this class, the claims of vocational education teachers will receive first consideration?
I am not prepared to do as the Deputy suggests. May I remind the Deputy that the appointment in this particular case was made as a result of open competition?
And the best man got the job.
I have no objection to the gentleman who was appointed; I do not know who he is. I put down the question principally to see that in future appointments the line I am advocating will be followed. I would not be a party to upsetting any appointments made. I ask the Minister if, in all future appointments, he will have regard to the fact that there are only 600 or 700 of these vocational teachers in the country; that these people have to go through a special course of training at their own expense; that they are not given the facilities which national teachers get in their training and that they are unable in the course of their own training to take up courses outside vocational teaching and that it is most unfair that national teachers with fulltime jobs should be given these appointments?
The principle of open competition was put up to me by the committee and I found it very difficult to refuse to give sanction to an appointment which has been made after an open competition announced in the Press.
May I say that my object in putting down the question was to get some kind of an undertaking from the Minister that he would in future consider favourably applications which may be received from vocational teachers?
That is a separate question.
Arising out of the Minister's reply, I want to ask if it is not a fact that the vocational education committee indicated to the Minister's Department that they wanted the best possible man for this position; that they advertised the position and set out all the conditions and the requirements; that these requirements were approved of by the Minister's Department; that the advertisement was duly inserted in the daily papers and that as a result of the advertisement 30 or 40 applications were received and examined; that they submitted, I think, 20 or 30 of these to the Minister's Department; that they were all invited to come up for an interview; that 20 or 30 of them were actually interviewed? I can say as a member of the committee, that in the opinion of the committee the best man got the job, and that is what we are after.
asked the Minister for Education if he is aware that in selecting a head master for the Marino Technical School, the City of Dublin Vocational Education Committee passed over several fully qualified vocational teachers and selected a national school teacher for the post; and if the Minister will consider, before giving effect to his sanction in this case, the protest made by the Vocational Education Officers' Organisation against the appointment, as being wrong in principle and unfair in practice.
Applications from qualified vocational teachers were amongst those received by the City of Dublin Vocational Education Committee for the position of head master of the Marino Technical School. The appointment made by the Committee, after selection and interview, has been notified to the Department; the committee's proposal and communications submitted in connection with the proposal are receiving careful consideration.