Poor funding blamed for school dropout rates

POOR school funding and Government inaction have been blamed for half of students dropping out of some schools before completing their Leaving Certificate.

Latest Department of Education figures show half the students in almost 10% of second-level schools drop out before the Leaving Cert examination. The statistic applies to 20% of schools in Co Longford and 18.6% of those in Dublin city.

In contrast, at least 75% of schools in counties Kerry, Leitrim, Mayo, Tipperary north had a student retention rate of 80% or higher up to Leaving Cert.