Nearly 16,000 Ukrainian pupils signed up in Irish schools as Ireland has one of highest rates of enrolment

The number of Ukrainian pupils in Irish schools continues to rise, with 15,589 enrolled last month.

In Europe, Ireland has one of the highest rates of enrolment for students who have fled their homeland since the Russian invasion in February 2022.

Following the initial surge in enrolments in 2022, the rate of increase has slowed since Christmas, but pupil numbers have grown to 10,105 in primary and 5,484 in post-primary.

The end of May figures are up from 7,420 in primary and 4,389 pupils in post-primary last September.

At least 103 post-primary Ukrainian teachers have registered with the Teaching Council.

Regional teams, co-ordinated locally by the 16 education and training boards, have been operating since March 2022 to facilitate enrolments and ensure necessary resources are provided to schools.

According to the most recent data, the Department of Education is funding 999 English language teachers, 254 special needs assistants (SNAs) and 201 special education teachers (SETs) to support the integration of Ukrainian pupils into schools.

Apart from in-school supports, about 5,000 Ukrainian pupils, who are dispersed through every county in Ireland, are availing of school transport.

Overall, 83pc of Ukrainian children of school-going age are in school, with a higher rate (92pc) among five to 12-year-olds, compared with 74pc among 17 to 18-year-olds.

The lower enrolment rate among 17 and 18-year-olds is attributed to a trend among students nearing the end of second-level to focus on online classes with teachers in Ukraine and sit their national end-of-school exam, known as National Multi-Subject Test (NMT).

The Department of Further and Higher Education has confirmed arrangements to host the NMT in Dublin this month, and at least 650 Ukrainian students in Ireland are registered to sit it.

Meanwhile, with no certainty about when the war in Ukraine will end, the State Examinations Commission (SEC) is making plans to examine Ukrainian for the first time as part of the Leaving Cert in 2025.

Get ahead of the day with the morning headlines at 7.30am and Fionnán Sheahan’s exclusive take on the day’s news every afternoon, with our free daily newsletter.