Ground zero for Ireland’s recovery

Primary education is the foundation on which the future rests, and it is time it got back on the agenda,says Seán Cottrell

AS students weigh their college course options ahead of the CAO deadline on Feb 1, much recent commentary by education and business leaders has, understandably, focused on second- and third-level education.

While there is no doubt that secondary schools and colleges are critical in shaping society, the role of primary education in the national recovery is sometimes overlooked.

Primary education is ground zero for Ireland’s renewal. It is the foundation on which the future rests. In seeking to improve it, we need to cast the net widely, including to major employers whose future skills needs we cannot afford to ignore.

Given the symbiotic link between education and enterprise, our education system must be responsive to employer needs, and those of us who work in classrooms have a responsibility to listen, learn, and lead.

Some 1,000 primary school leaders are gathering today to attend the Irish Primary Principals’ Network annual conference in Dublin. Our objective is to create a platform for school leaders, invited guests, and speakers, including Education Minister Ruairí Quinn, to critically reflect on primary education, and set out a vision that helps to renew our society and economy.

More than 20 industry and academic leaders will join us to discuss leadership and future skills needs.

For too long, Irish education has been characterised by a silo-based approach to policy-making, and this lack of engagement has achieved little more than a mutual misunderstanding of motives. In reality, though, there is a very close link between the skills needs of future employers and the range of aptitudes developed in primary schools. Results from the latest international tests of literacy, maths, and science, show Irish primary school students are scoring above average. In reading, they rank 10th out of 45 participating countries. But, in all three tests, we still trail other countries.

Sustained investment in our education system, particularly in curricular reform, professional development, and school leadership, will help us to keep improving outcomes across these vital categories.

In all our conversations with employers, a recurring theme is their need for candidates who have skills such as critical thinking, analysing, listening, enquiring, problem-solving, teamwork, and communication. While these skills permeate the primary curriculum, they are lost at second- and third-level, due to narrow-focused, high-stakes testing that encourages rote learning.

The reforms now under way in the junior cycle, which aim to foster independent learning through project work and continuous assessment, are an important shift in emphasis. If they work, these reforms will seep through to senior cycle, and even change how the points-based college admissions system works.

We need to examine, too, how science and maths are taught in primary schools. Since we know that our future lies in the knowledge society, enabled by technology, why not commit to teaching a single subject through technology — science or maths, for example — from junior infants through to Junior Certificate?

It may be time to seriously consider introducing foreign languages in the primary school curriculum, not least since the absence of a second or third language is among the labour market barriers often cited by employers.

The job of an educator is to teach, but it is also to develop well-rounded and participative citizens. That is why we need to develop confidence in children early, helping them to become less vulnerable to bullying and better adjusted for later life. These are important attributes when dealing with work situations that will demand an ability to present and persuade, to challenge the status quo, and to handle criticism. This is only possible if we empower principals to lead learning. Giving them the intellectual concepts and practical tools — continuous professional development and fewer administrative tasks, for example — will enable leadership.

Ultimately, though, everyone, be they educators or parents, politicians or entrepreneurs, have a stake in the future we choose to create. As a first step, educators and policy makers must be brave enough to heed other voices, acknowledge and fix system failures, support teachers and principals, and invest in areas that deliver quality educational outcomes.

*Seán Cottrell is director of the Irish Primary Principals’ Network