Education – a economic priorityTUI Symposium - October 17, 2008Presented by: Tony Donohoe, Head of Education and Social Policy

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Education and training

Education’s role in economic recovery– But its importance transcends economic issues

Cumulative nature of educational success– early childhood development to lifelong learning

Teacher quality and professional development Delivering for every child Curriculum reform Further and higher education Lifelong learning Investment at a time of fiscal stress

Importance of ‘generic’ skills Pay attention to teacher quality and professional development Integration of training and education systems Education and training system has played a key role in Ireland’s economic transformation over the

last three decades Need to innovate and change Demand for individuals who can combine discipline-specific technical knowledge with

entrepreneurial skills and an ability to think creatively

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National context

Source: Enterprise Strategy Group

World-class Skills, Education

& Training

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Heckman curve

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PISA rankings – 15 year olds

400

420

440

460

480

500

520

540

560

580

Fin

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So

uth

K

ore

a

Ne

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Jap

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Ire

lan

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Ge

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ny

Sw

ed

en

UK

De

nm

ark

Sin

ga

po

re

OE

CD

Fra

nce

Po

lan

d

US

Ind

ex

of

Lit

era

cy

Ra

nk

ed

by

Ov

era

ll A

ve

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Reading Literacy Scientific Literacy Mathematical Literacy

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McKinsey Study

Quality of a education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers ‘Variations in teacher quality completely dominate

any effect of reduced class size’ Get the right people to become teachers Develop these people into effective

instructors– Mentoring, coaching, peer-learning, teamwor Increase Government investment in CPD Improve autonomy for college/school

leadership …requires greater flexibility from teaching

profession

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School reforms and teaching practice

Similar effect to that that of a storm on the ocean‘The surface is agitated and turbulent while the ocean floor is calm and serene (if a bit murky). Policy churns dramatically … creating the appearance of major changes … while deep below the surface, life goes on largely uninterrupted’

Cuban (1984)

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Delivering for every child

Resources and funding targeted at those who need them most

Set clear and high expectations for student performance but less prescriptive curricula

Monitoring and intervene at school level– Examinations and school reviews

Monitoring and intervene at pupil level Special education teachers to support one-

on-one or small group teaching– 30% of all pupils in Finland– De-stigmatised– Teachers get an additional year of training

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Generic competences v ‘holistic’ education

Basic/fundamental skills such as literacy, using numbers, using technology;

People-related skills such as communication, interpersonal, team working, customer-service skills; and

Conceptual skills such as collecting and organising information, problem-solving, planning and organising, learning-to-learn skills, innovation and creativity, systems thinking

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Population with a Third Level EducationBy Age Cohort, 2006

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%

EU-15

Ireland

UK

OECD

US

55-64 45-54 35-44 25-34

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Lifelong learning in EU member states

4.2%

5.0%

6.0%

6.2%

7.6%

8.0%

12.1%

12.7%

16.6%

24.8%

27.6%

29.1%

34.7%

0.0% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0% 25.0% 30.0% 35.0% 40.0%

Hungary

Poland

Germany (2004)

Italy

France

Ireland

Spain

EU 15

Netherlands

Finland

Denmark

UK

Sweden

Lisbon Target 12.5%

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Lifelong learning

Time, money and motivation Flexible delivery

– Different modes (blended/e- learning, modularisation, credits, flexible hours of delivery etc.)

– Bluebrick.ie Increased awareness of benefits of education

and training Establishing a workable system on ‘who pays’ Systematic identification of the needs of

individuals and enterprises ‘Joined-up’ education and training policy

across government departments

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Investment at a time of fiscal stress

Economic return accrues mainly in the long term but must be a priority

Need to spend scarce public resources with maximum efficiency

Focus on inputs can be misleading Balance focus between absolute levels

of funding and other reforms that could improve student performance

Provide opportunities for teachers to use skills and commitment