IPPN

Published: 07 February 2019

It is advisable that the teachers with conditional registration with an expiry on 1 February 2019:

• Submit the completed form to the Teaching Council demonstrating that they have now met the condition(s) to ensure that their registration is updated
• Make an application for an extension to the period of conditional registration by 11 February 2019. A completed extension request form should be completed and submitted with supporting documentation.

Failure to comply will result in a lapse of registration and non-payment of salary. To renew membership again, a teacher will be required to submit a full application form for registration in addition to a vetting application, qualification transcripts, overseas police clearance etc.

Published: 07 February 2019

What if a staff member comes to the school leader upset that their application for leave or job share has been declined by the Board of Management……….?

There are times when an application for leave or job share may be declined by the Board. Following the communication of the Board’s decision, a school leader may have a difficult conversation with a staff member. It is essential that once the Board has made its decision, the means of communicating it is discussed and agreed. Ideally this communication should come from the Board through the Chairperson as this is a Board decision.

However, the teacher may be left feeling that the principal could have done more. This can be a difficult conversation. The best advice is to listen attentively and acknowledge their disappointment at the Board’s decision. While offering support to the staff member, do not react and promise to do something that may be difficult to deliver in future. Any further discussion regarding the decision would need to be directed to the Board through the Chairperson.

Published: 30 January 2019

Does your school use an external provider to provide technical support services for IT equipment/infrastructure, including computers/tablets, school network, wifi, printers, projectors, etc, and if so are you happy with the service they provide ?
If you don’t have such a service in place or if you are unhappy with the quality of service from your current provider, you may be interested in a new IPPN/PDST initiative, ‘Technical Support Clusters’, which we hope to pilot with a number of schools over the coming year.

While managing technical support is a constant challenge for all schools, it is particularly demanding for primary schools who have been unable to identify a suitable company who can provide an appropriate level of technical support at a reasonable cost. We know that there are schools who have a company which provides this kind of service, and who state that the critical difference it provides is that it creates more time for the school to focus on the teaching and learning aspects while spending less time ‘firefighting’ technical problems in their schools, and of which they have little expertise.

The purpose of the Technical Support Clusters Pilot is therefore to support schools in providing such a service:

The summary of the main stages in the pilot include:
1. Identifying a group or cluster of schools in a specific regional area who wish to join the pilot.
2. Then identifying a suitable IT company based in that region who can provide an appropriate and cost effective technical support service to the schools in that cluster
3. Develop a model that will be sustainable, so that it works well for schools but also provides a sustainable business model for a regional IT provider
4. Improve and develop the model over the pilot period.
5. Schools and IPPN to evaluate the pilot after one year, and make recommendations on whether to expand the pilot to include more schools.

We believe that this regional cluster model of technical support can work more effectively for schools for the following reasons:
1. It can create more time for schools to focus on teaching and learning while spending less time trying to manage a wide range of technical issues.
2. It can be delivered by an IT provider more cost-effectively (ie., at a lower cost per school) than if each school was managing technical support separately
3. It is based on a flexible model that can evolve to meet the needs of schools as schools technical support needs change.
4. Participating IT companies will first have to agree to an IPPN set of terms and conditions, for example to provide a high level of customer support, charge reasonable and transparent costs etc.
5. Allow a sharing of best practice from one school to other schools or from one cluster to others.
6. A constant focus on process improvement, so that over time there is a general improvement in how technical support issues are handled.
7. A gradual and planned approach to moving from being ‘out of control’ technically to having a pragmatic and organised process in place to regain control of the technical support area.
8. An improved partnership relationship with the schools IT support provider.

We believe that this regional cluster model of technical support can also work more effectively for technical support providers for the following reasons:
1. As the technical support company is working with a regional cluster of schools collectively, rather than with each school individually, the service should be easier to provide and as such should be cheaper, and use ‘best practice’ approaches.
2. As the cluster is regionally based, it is potentially more attractive to a regional provider, and as such is more sustainable for schools and for the company supporting them.
3. The Cluster model will hopefully make it easier for IT companies to employ more local IT staff and be more sustainable especially for more rural areas and schools.

As such we believe that the cluster model can be a ‘win – win’ situation for schools, their communities, as well as for IT companies who are willing to invest their time and effort to work with IPPN and with schools.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How much will it cost ?
A: The costs per school will be based on the level of support they require?

Q: Will funding be provided by IPPN or the DES
A: No, however we plan to provide a significant level of support to help in getting the pilot up and running.

Q: Is the Pilot for IPPN member schools only?
A: Yes

Q: What if I join the pilot and I don’t want to continue, can I leave?
A: Yes, but instead let’s think of the glass as half-full !!

Published: 13 December 2018

In the second of our two-part series on the CPSI model, we look at how the Inspectorate will arrive at a judgement and what next steps need to be considered.

How will the Inspector Arrive at a judgement in a Child Protection & Safeguarding Inspection?
The inspectors will make a judgement as to the extent that a school is compliant using the following scale:

• Fully compliant
• Substantially compliant
• Partially compliant
• Not compliant

For the check on the provision for Social Personal and Health Education Curriculum (SPHE) and Stay Safe in Primary Schools and SPHE and Relationships and Sexuality Education Programme (RSE) in post-primary schools, the inspector will use the following scale to arrive at a judgement:

• Very good
• Good
• Satisfactory
• Fair
• Weak

This is the scale that is used on all other inspection models

What are the next stages in the development of the Child Protection & Safeguarding Inspection Model?
The trial of the evaluation will conclude shortly and the Inspectorate will seek feedback from those schools that participated in the trial. This feedback will further inform the development of the model.

A final consultation session with the education partners is scheduled for Tuesday 18 December 2018.

It is intended to mainstream the model in a sample of schools in 2019. This means that the Inspectorate will conduct a number of Child Protection and Safeguarding Inspections in primary and post-primary schools nationally as part of its annual inspection programme.

A series of information sessions on the Child Protection and Safeguarding Inspection model is being organised for school principals at the following Education Centres:

Seminars for Primary Principals will take place from 13.30 – 15.30 (tea/coffee on arrival)

The experience of the research visits and the trial of the Child Protection and Safeguarding Inspection model has shown that schools are very much engaged in implementing the Child Protection Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools 2017. These seminars are designed as a further support to principals in their implementation of the Child Protection Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools 2017.

They will provide an overview of key aspects of Child Protection and Safeguarding Inspection including its aims and its features, the checks conducted during the inspection and Child Protection and Safeguarding Inspection reports. Participants at the seminar will have an opportunity to discuss and ask questions about the Child Protection and Safeguarding Inspection model.