School inspection reports go online

THE Department of Education added more than 200 school inspection reports to its website yesterday.

The reports include whole school evaluations (WSEs) of 24 primary and 11 second level schools, giving comments from inspectors on each school’s management, use of resources, effectiveness of teaching and learning, arrangements for student assessment, supports for students, provision for minority groups and home-school links.

A further 162 subject inspection reports on second level schools are also published.

This is the second batch of school inspection reports to be published by the department and brings the number on its website to 356, covering 282 schools.

Education Minister Mary Hanafin announced the move earlier this year to give parents more information on the country’s 4,000 schools, amid concern about the publication of school league tables based on exam results and the numbers of students attending college.

The measure met with some reservations from teacher unions but they secured the right for every school to have its response to any inspection report published alongside it.

lThe list of schools and their reports published to date can be found in the highlights section on www.education.ie.