ASTI demands more staff to help special needs pupils
The Association of Secondary Teachers is demanding that the Government hire more staff to cater for pupils with special needs.
The association made the demand today ahead of its annual conference in Ennis, Co Clare, next week.
An estimated 5% of second-level students in Ireland have special needs ranging from learning difficulties to behavioural disorders.
However, ASTI says a lack of funding is preventing these problems from being addressed.
The association says primary schools and third-level institutions had received a significant funding boost in the last budget, but staffing levels at secondary schools had not increased in six years.
It also says almost every primary school in the country has a permanent special needs teacher, but this figure falls to just over one-third at second level.
