ASTI - Ireland's main second level teachers union

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Commenting on the publication of “college-entry” tables in today’s newspapers, ASTI General Secretary John White said:

“It is understandable that parents might view the construction of college-entry tables with some fascination. However, it is important to recognise that these tables do not tell us about the performance of schools and present a distorted picture of the second-level school system.

“There is not a scrap of evidence to prove that two pupils of equal academic ability will perform differently if one goes to a school at the top of these league tables and the other to another school.

“These tables distort the fact that a school which develops a pupil in order to attain a pass grade may have contributed as much or more as another school which develops a pupil to attain an A grade.

“The best schools are those which provide a broad and holistic education to pupils from all kinds of backgrounds and with all levels of ability.

“League tables, which were a product of the raw market philosophy of the Thatcher Government in the UK, are recognised as having damaged the education system there.

“League tables treat students as one homogenous group rather than individuals with a unique set of interests, talents, abilities and life experiences. They can distort the priorities of schools as schools come under pressure to jettison aspects of holistic education which do not contribute to an improvement in a school’s position in the league table.

“Finland, which is top in the world in the OECD studies on the performance of second-level students, does not have league tables.

“The Irish second-level education system, with its emphasis on the provision of a holistic education which develops the whole person, also performs well in these OECD studies.”

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