Sir, – The Department of Education’s recently launched “National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011 – 2020” notes “a continued weak performance” in “measures in mathematics”, among other challenges. This should come as no surprise, considering the continued use of both the imperial measurement system and the metric system in Ireland.
Although children and young people are taught in schools and colleges using the metric system, wider society continues to use the imperial system.
During the All-Ireland championship, RTÉ gave the statistics regarding players in feet, inches, stones and pounds. The commentators then used the metric measurements when describing the 65-metre puck or the 45-metre free kick. A good example of this mixed usage of both measurement systems was when a commentator said that a certain player was a few yards beyond the 65-metre line.
However, during its coverage of the rugby world cup, RTÉ uses the metric system when giving the weight of the Irish pack. Why one measurement system for one sport and not the other?
Gardaí are often heard to describe a person they are looking for in feet and inches. Radio traffic reports indicate tailbacks of a few miles, yet all the road signs are in the metric system. Engine performance is measured in miles per gallon, yet fuel is sold in litres and we travel on roads signposted in kilometres.
In the agricultural sector land prices are given in euro per acre, yet the price of livestock is euro per kilogramme. The weight of a newborn baby is announced with great joy and pride by parents in pounds and ounces, yet on the medical records, it is written in kilograms.
The anomalies are to be seen in every sector of society.
If Ireland is serious about becoming a knowledge-based, smart economy, engaging in scientific and engineering research, all of which require precision and exactitude in measuring, we need as a society to adopt the metric system at all levels.
The continued use of both systems will lead to continued weakness in Irish children and young people in understanding measures in maths. – Yours, etc,