Madam, - We wish to express our surprise and concern at the continued promotion, by The Irish Times, Irish Independent and other publications, of the so-called "feeder schools" league tables. These schools are defined as the "top" feeder schools to third-level colleges in Ireland.
Publishing the results of this type of competition or league, based on the percentage of Leaving Certificate students in particular schools in a given year who go on to third level is, at best, a spurious exercise that appears to emanate from a narrow and outdated view of educational achievement.
The underlying implication seems to be that schools are "failing" and their students underachieving, when students opt for alternative routes through career and life, eg, the students who opted for further study - and possibly indirect entry to third level - through the burgeoning FETAC/ PLC sector.
That vast array of young people who choose to go straight into the world of work to serve in the many tertiary industries, including the banks and civil service, in the retail, hospitality and entertainment areas as well as the traditional trades in the secondary manufacturing sector, are similarly overlooked.
We fear that authorities of schools competing in this league may feel under pressure to keep special needs (including the many students today for whom English is not the first language), as well as the "less promising" students, out of the team if they are to maintain and improve their league standing. We, the undersigned, are all past students of Pearse College, a VEC school in Crumlin, Dublin 12, which offers an inclusive, student-centred and broad curriculum in line with the interests and needs of its students.
All children of the nation, and of the world, are welcome here. From our collective experience at Pearse College, we believe that when a school or college is truly inclusive, it makes for a healthier, happier and altogether more productive atmosphere.
In this, the centenary year of the founding of Pearse's great experimental school, we call on all Irish media outlets to give due account to the many educational institutions nationwide for whom the spirit of St Enda's is already a reality. - Yours, etc,