The ranking of Irish students in literacy and maths has fallen dramatically in the latest OECD survey. But how have ‘Irish Times’ readers in Ireland and across the globe responded to this news? The following comments were posted on irishtimes.com

“Nobody in education leadership seems to articulate a vision for the role of education in human development and social intercourse. Nobody in education leadership, at any level, leads a discussion on the importance of a capacity to think critically – how that is fostered and the role it plays in civilisation.’’

– Myles Duffy

“I find it hard to fathom that the Leaving Cert is still based on Gradgrindian rote learning. The only surprise, I suppose, is that Ireland isn’t lower in the table.’’

– Anon

“Teachers are trapped in a system where parents and students expect good Leaving Cert results. And by and large the students get them.

“There’s no proof that Irish teaching standards are lower than other countries – if you look at the investment and computing facilities, the fact is that Irish teachers have punched well above their weight for decades.’’

– James Fryer

“These results can hardly be surprising. When one looks at the Ireland of today, with broken families and broken marriages, our children find themselves in a much more unsettled environment than in the past.

“And the effect of that unsettled environment finds its way into the classroom where teachers are faced with huge discipline problems and having to function first and foremost as social workers.”

– Ethicist

“Irish society (and this is a general stereotype) has never valued intellectualism. The rule of mediocrity has presided and the naysayers, or those who raised the warning flags, were drowned out by the majority.’’

– Anonymous

“Last week, my daughter’s primary school was closed for three days. It is open this week but closed today due to a holy day. On December 17th, there is a staff meeting which means the school will close at 1.30pm instead of 2.30pm. Staff meetings, a frequent occurrence during the year, always take place during teaching time. Parent-teacher meetings (five minutes per child) take place during the school lunch break – perish the thought they might occur when parents who work are normally available.

“There is never a situation where they happen outside of school hours. My daughter is in first class and never gets maths homework – we have to make it up. Now I know my comments will rankle with teachers, but whatever way you dress it up it’s not a bad little number for many of them, particularly primary ones. If there is a decline in education standards in this country, it is nonsense that teachers do not have some responsibility.’’

– Bren

“I used to think that all these wonderful educational standards that reviews and reports told us we had were a bit far-fetched anyway . . . I firmly believe that the problem is primarily with teachers . . . Some are amazing, capturing wonderfully the qualities of an effective teacher. The majority, however, fall sadly short of that vocationalism.’’

– Eisteardebúrca

“Finland is an example of an equal society – not only does it have an excellent education system but it also has an excellent health service, etc. Education in Ireland is underfunded relative to other OECD countries. The Junior Cert is a straitjacket which perpetuates a system of rote learning rather than learning for understanding.

“We will get there, though, because we have a lot of dedicated people.’’

– Marty

You can join the debate at irishtimes.com/opinion