RIGHT: Dr Selina McCoy, higher research officer at the Economic Social and Research Institute (ESRI)

The Economic Social and Research Institute (ESRI), the Government’s economic think-tank, has stressed the need to continue its survey of school leavers now more than ever because of the valuable insights it gives into the factors shaping the educational pathways and attainments of young people in school and after they leave.

The decision to cease funding the survey after 30 years has immense implications for the nature of educational research and its role in policy information, Dr Selina McCoy, higher research officer at the Economic Social and Research Institute (ESRI), said.

“In the current economic climate, the importance of the survey in assessing the labour market experiences of young people cannot be overstated,” she said.

This is particularly pertinent now, as there are far fewer opportunities for early school leavers, she added.

The data gathered in each survey are used in a broad range of Irish and international research studies, examining issues such as school attendance and participation in programmes such as the Leaving Certificate Applied and Transition Year. The information is also used in studies on the impact of participation in Post Leaving Certificate courses.

The report on the School Leavers' Survey 2006, published 15 months ago, stated that policy must address the fact that there had been no improvement in school completion levels since the early 1990s. It showed:

• more than 18% of people who left second level education in 2003 and 2004 had not reached the Leaving Certificate,a higher figure than in 1993.
  
• the highest number in 10 years of people who left school without reaching Junior Certificate - at 4% of school leavers.       

Don Ryan, president of Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI), said that even at the height of our economic boom, "the drop out ratio of one-in-five remained unacceptably high".               

“Now more than ever, we need to know why these young people are disengaging themselves from the system and we need fresh    data so that appropriate education and training measures can be put in place to ensure retention,” Mr Ryan said.

The report of the 2007 School Leavers’ Survey, which examines the qualifications and progress of those who finished second-level education in 2005, is due to be published in the coming weeks.

Work on the next survey would have been due to begin before the summer. However, the Department of Education has said that, because of current budgetary pressures, it is not possible to find the €250,000 required to fund this year's survey. 

Funding will continue, however, for regular OECD studies on literacy and maths among 15-year-olds - at a cost of €311,000 this year - and an OECD assessment of adult skills in the workplace, which will cost up to €5 million to 2013. The department will also continue its participation in an international study on citizenship education in second level schools, which has a budget of €210,000. (Source: Irish Examiner)