Lack of funds blamed for axing school leavers survey

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Lack of funds blamed for axing school leavers survey

A SURVEY that has previously highlighted government failures to reduce the number of young people dropping out of school is to be axed by the Department of Education. The Irish Examiner has learned that senior department officials cited the €250,000 cost of the School Leavers Survey (SLS) as the reason for discontinuing its support.

The Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) conducted the survey of school leavers every year from 1980 to 1999, and in 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2007.

The 2006 SLS report, published 15 months ago, showed that 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. It also showed the highest number in 10 years of people who left school without reaching Junior Certificate - at 4% of school leavers.

The report said policy must address the fact that there has been no improvement in school completion levels since the early 1990s.

As well as showing the numbers dropping out of school, the survey also gives insights into the factors turning young people off school, including teachers' support, perceptions of school work, and the problems they face finding work without qualifications.

Teachers' Union of Ireland president Don Ryan said the most marginalised students have already been targeted by budget cuts on programmes to keep them in school but those who are dropping out will now become the "disappeared" of Irish education.

"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 appropriate education and training measures can be put in place to ensure retention," he 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. However, work on the next survey, had it gone ahead, would have been due to begin before summer.

The Department of Education said last night it was not possible to find the funding because of current budgetary pressures.

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.