Fall in Irish teens’ literacy could be down to attention

THE dramatic fall in Irish teenagers’ scores on international literacy tests could partly be down to more students switching off before reaching the end, an analysis of their performance revealed.

While acknowledging there were declines in Ireland’s standards, on reading and maths, compared to other developed countries, Department of Education chief inspector, Dr Harold Hislop said reduced student engagement and some other demographic changes are likely to account for a significant element of the drop.

The results, last December, of tests among 15-year- olds in more than 30 countries in 2009 showed Irish reading scores fell more than in any other country since 2000. The fall from significantly above-average to the OECD average meant Ireland dropped from 5th to 17th internationally.