A total of €532,488in is be invested in ICT infrastructure for primary and post-primary schools in county Laois, it has been confirmed.
The news has been welcomed by Laois TD and Minister for Justice & Equality, Charlie Flanagan.
Primary and post primary schools around the county will receive a grant to purchase equipment which will enable them to integrate digital technology in teaching and learning.
“Today’s announcement is very appropriate as it marks the start of Internet Safety Week. Funding has been granted to develop Information and communications technology in our schools in County Laois,” Minister Flanagan said.
“We have seen how digital technology can transform the learning experiences of students, providing them with sought-after digital skills as they progress through the education system,” he said.
“The grant, which will be received by all schools built prior to 2014, is worth approximately €4,100 for a 100 pupil school and approximately €13,000 for a 500 pupil school at primary level. At post-primary level, the grant is worth circa €18,000 for a 500 student school, and over €33,000 for a 1,000 student school. This grant will benefit 73 schools here in Laois,” Minister Flanagan said.
Schools built since 2014 are excluded as they would have received funding for ICT infrastructure upon set up, Minister Flanagan outlined.
Some examples of the infrastructure that schools can purchase with this funding are: Projectors; Cloud based tools and applications to support learning; Learning platforms – these are generally cloud based applications used to support the teaching and learning process.
Support
“Today’s funding will support the development and implementation of an eLearning Plan for each school to embed ICT in teaching and learning which is very welcome for our schools,” Minister Flanagan added.
The rates payable are €2,000 per school plus €21.47 per mainstream pupil in primary schools, with additional per capita payments for pupils in DEIS schools, Special Classes and Special Schools. At post-primary, the rates payable are €2,000 per school plus €31.22 per student, with an additional per capita payment for students in DEIS schools
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