Don’t bring maths down to student level

FOLLOWING the Leaving Certificate results, the Minister for Education pledged to revise the mathematics syllabus.

I did my Leaving Cert under the present syllabus and although it was challenging, I learned problem-solving skills and numerical reasoning that have proved invaluable to me.

If the course is revised I hope the standards are not lowered to match the low standard of students now in our secondary schools.

If this happens, the good maths’ students will become bored and lose interest in the subject.

The Science Foundation mathematics initiative is trying to improve mathematics in Ireland at third and fourth levels.

Lowering the standard at second level is not going to help this.

Most of those who failed were taking the ordinary level paper and if they cannot pass that, then maybe the students who failed are just lazy.

Daithí O’hEachach

22 Collinswood

Collins Ave

Dublin 9