Ireland Highly Ranked In Reducing Childhood Educational Inequality

Ireland has been ranked second out of 41 wealthy nations at reducing education inequality between children, according to UNICEF's latest Report Card.

The report, 'An Unfair Start: Inequality in Children's Education in Rich Countries' focuses on educational inequalities in 41 of the world's richest countries, looking at two principle indicators of inequality:

• the percentage of students enrolled in organised learning one year before the official age for entering primary school

• the gap in reading scores between the lowest and highest-performing students in both primary school (fourth class, around age 10) and secondary school (age 15), using PIRLS and PISA results respectively.

The ranking at age 15 is the lead indicator in the report as this represents the level of inequality towards the end of compulsory education. The report also explores in depth the relationships between educational inequality and factors such as parents' occupations, the child's gender and school characteristics.

The ranking results for Ireland show that inequality among children decreases as they move from early childhood education (33rd) to primary school (16th) and on to secondary school (2nd). However, with one in 10 students not reaching basic proficiency in reading by secondary school (age 15), a large minority are still falling through the gaps and not getting the resources they need.

UNICEF Ireland Chief Executive Peter Power said: "UNICEF's latest Report Card shows that Ireland can lead the way when the right funding and polices are in place. This is to be celebrated. However, we are concerned that some of the children most in need, be they from vulnerable groups such as Traveller children, children experiencing homelessness or immigrant children, or those children living outside of the DEIS support system, are being left behind.

"In Ireland, around 86% of the inequality in reading scores is between children within schools, and only a small amount is between schools. This means that while our schools produce good results for the many, there are some children, and often those most in need, who are falling through the gaps. We need to ensure that every child has the right wrap around supports they need in school to achieve their highest potential."

• Traveller children – According to the 2016 census, just 13% of Traveller girls completed second-level education, compared to 69% of the general population. Over 57% of Traveller boys ceased education at primary level, compared to 13% in the general population. 50% of Travellers reside outside of DEIS educational areas and the number of Travellers who have attained a third level qualification represents less than 1% of their community.

• Children experiencing homelessness – Over 3,000 children currently experience homelessness in Ireland, with research showing that many of these children are forced to make long journeys to school, arriving exhausted, without breakfast and in dirty uniforms due to inadequate washing facilities. This can lead to affected school attendance and performance.

• Immigrant children – In 21 of the 25 countries, including Ireland, with substantial levels of immigration, a higher percentage of first-generation immigrant children (12.8%) fail to reach basic literacy levels at age 15 than non-migrant children (9.1%). While the difference is modest, the report shows that the rate for second-generation immigrants (13.2%) in Ireland actually increases, as opposed to many other countries such as the UK, where educational outcomes vastly improve for second-generation immigrants.

For many students, the report delivered positive findings for Ireland, with a clear improvement visible in terms of education inequality from early childhood education to secondary school.

• Early childhood education – Ireland is ranked 33rd in early childhood education (preschool), which measures the percentage of students (91.4%) enrolled in organised learning one year before the official age for entering primary school. The benefits of preschool education can be long-lasting. According to the OECD, 15-year-olds who report having had more than one year of pre-primary education do substantially better at reading than those with no pre-primary education, even after accounting for the child's economic and social position.

• Primary school – Ireland ranks 16th when comparing the difference between the highest scoring 10% fourth-class students and the lowest scoring 10%. According to the latest PIRLS research Irish primary school students score among the world's highest in literacy levels, but one in ten children in Ireland still do not reach intermediate level.

• Secondary school – Ireland ranks second when comparing the difference between the highest scoring 10% 15-year-old students and the lowest scoring 10%. Ireland has the highest percentage (90%) of students achieving basic reading proficiency at age 15.

Other significant findings for Ireland:

• Countries can have different degrees of educational inequality at different educational stages. Ireland is in the bottom third of countries (high inequality) for preschool enrolment, but move to the top third (low inequality) at secondary school.

• Ireland and Slovenia are the only two countries that move up from the bottom third in preschool access to the middle third in equality at primary school and the top third in equality at secondary school.

The report identifies several factors which drive educational inequality, globally and in Ireland:

• Parental Occupation – Large inequalities in children's educational progress are linked to family background. In half of the European countries, including Ireland, preschool children aged 3 and older from lower-income households are less likely to attend education centres. Parental occupation explains up to one third of the variation in reading scores at the fourth class, with children whose parents work in professional occupations doing better in reading in all the countries measured. At 15, children whose parents work in lower-ranked occupations do worse in reading and are less likely to say that they expect to complete post-secondary education across all 35 countries.

• Gender – There are already substantial gender differences in children's reading abilities by Grade 4. Girls do better than boys. Yet, in some countries the gap can shrink when tests are done on a computer rather than on paper. Internationally, the gaps in reading performance tend to grow as children get older but at 15 years of age girls do just 2% better than boys in Ireland, which is the smallest gap in gender related scores in all countries tested.

• Difference Between Schools – Internationally children's educational opportunities can be substantially influenced by which school they attend. There are often large differences in average achievement between schools within the same country, especially if specific socio-economic backgrounds are concentrated in any one school. The report finds that differences caused by family background tend to have the most impact on scores. In Ireland, there is also a bigger difference between students in the same school, rather than between the scores of different schools.

Despite the positive findings, substantial gaps still exist between the best and worst performing students and there are concerns that vulnerable groups such as Traveller children, children experiencing homelessness and immigrant children are in danger of being left behind due to insufficient educational supports.

(MH/CM)