IPPN

Published: 26 April 2011

EDUCATION Minister Ruairí Quinn addressed the national teachers’ union annual conference in Sligo last night and later this week he will speak to delegates at the ASTI and TUI conferences in Cork and Tralee.

He will reiterate his determination to reverse declines in numeracy and literacy levels revealed in the recent OECD Programme for International Student Assessment which dealt with educational achievement amongst 15-year-olds.

This survey infamously shattered long-held, and too often self-serving, beliefs that we had a world class education system. It recorded that one-in-four boys in that age bracket are illiterate. This is not only an indictment of our educational system but of our society as a whole.

Allowing any Irish citizen reach that point in their life without the basic skills needed to function in a modern society is almost a denial of their human rights and is utterly wrong and unacceptable. Not only is it nearly disastrous for the individual, it has negative consequences right across communities.

In reading skills, we fell 12 places to 17th amongst the 39 countries considered, and in maths Ireland dropped 10 places to 26th, the second steepest decline recorded. The OECD described our educational attainment as below average in maths and barely average in science. Figures like these define a failing society, not one with ambitions and capabilities like ours.

No matter what the reasons these figures are unacceptable and must be confronted with realism and energy if we are ever to rebuild an economy capable of supporting our needs and ambitions.

Mr Quinn is certain to tell delegates that these trends must be reversed using the resources to hand as our economic dependency on the continuing but expensive kindness of strangers means funding is more likely to be cut than increased.