No decision on testing in primary schools - Hanafin

The Minister for Education said she had made no decision on the introduction of standardised testing in primary schools.

Ms Hanafin said no decision would be made "until after I have carried out a thorough exploration of all the issues relating to the announcement made by my predecessor last July".

She added that she was currently awaiting advice from the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, through its consultative and partnership processes. This was expected early next year.

"Then I will be in a position to engage in further consultations, as appropriate, with the relevant partners including teachers and parents," she added.

"Since decisions have yet to be made with regard to standardised testing in primary schools, it is too early to give details of the uses that will be made of test information.

"Furthermore, it would be inappropriate to pre-empt the advice that I have yet to receive."

Ms Hanafin assured the House, however, that it was not the Department's intention to use the results of standardised tests to compile school league tables, or as a stand-alone measure to determine the allocation of resources to individual pupils and schools, or as a stand-alone criterion to measure the effectiveness of individual teachers and schools.

The Fine Gael spokeswoman on education, Ms Olwyn Enright, pressed the Minister to say how long more her exploration of the issues would last.

"I am glad that she is taking proper advice on this issue and is not just following on the announcement made by her predecessor, Deputy Dempsey, as I am not too sure what advice was behind that," she added.

Ms Enright added that, although she was concerned at testing children at too young an age, there must be some sort of baseline from which to start.

Ms Hanafin said she, too, was concerned about rushing into a system that might put pressure on students, parents and, in particular, very young children in the primary system before the nature of the type of tests used had been worked out.