The Green Party has called for the introduction of a tracking system based on PPS numbers to monitor the movement of pupils between primary school and second level.
Green Party education spokesman Paul Gogarty said that with 1,000 children failing to make the transition between primary and second level, it was essential new mechanisms were created to monitor their movements through the education system.
"It is scandalous that there is still no comprehensive database of primary school pupils. A system based on PPS numbers has been talked about for years, but the political will has not been exerted to get it up and running.
"As a result, children who drop out of primary school cannot be properly tracked. We need a secure system put in place with proper checks and balances that apply to all sensitive personal information," said Mr Gogarty.
"While a second level school database already exists based on the annual school attendance roll, it too could benefit from being integrated into the PPS system to give up-to-date information. This would allow a child's movements from one primary or secondary school to another to be monitored by an education welfare officer."
He said those students who had not registered with a second-level school could be easily tracked via a computerised system.
Mr Gogarty continued: "Using the PPS, it would also assist in the quicker identification of children who have dropped out during the school year at second level."
The Greens say the latest initiative on school attendance is part of their 50 Steps to a Better Education System.
