Madam, - Fionnula Kilfeather, outgoing chief executive of the National Parents Council - Primary, asserts that "even with huge investment in education, we are not getting the full payback" (Education Today, April 24th).
This statement flies in the face of the fact that in international comparisons, Irish pupils, despite one of the lowest rates of investment in education, consistently perform at average or above-average levels of achievement. Ireland is getting a far better return on its educational investment than many other countries.
Nowhere is the extent of under-investment more clearly seen than in the overcrowded primary school classes of this State.
The fact that Ireland is one of the wealthiest EU countries makes the claim to huge investment difficult to sustain.
Ms Kilfeather appears to justify her position by claiming that the education system is failing children and young people who are disadvantaged.
Again, this is not borne out by the facts. Department of Education and Science reports show that pupils in disadvantaged schools make the same progress in literacy and numeracy as their non-disadvantaged peers.
To use a business phrase, they add on the same value.
What disadvantaged schools are unable to do at present is to close the achievement gap between disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged pupils that exists at the time of starting school.
This is hardly surprising when one considers the way in which poverty affects Irish children and the fact that only 10 per cent of all spending on educational disadvantage is aimed at primary schools.
School non-attendance in disadvantaged schools is three times higher than the national norm and despite our economic progress, many children still come to school hungry every day. It appears to me that a wider lens is required if one is to view these issues clearly. - Yours, etc,
ANGELA DUNNE, President, Irish National Teachers' Organisation, Parnell Square, Dublin 1.