Mr. Seán Ó Foghlú:

Dr. Andreas Schleicher was with us yesterday. He was also on the radio yesterday morning. He referred to the PISA study, which is a study of 15 year olds. The last set of general outcomes from that was in December of last year. It showed that our performance in mathematics generally was consistent with our performance in previous studies, other than in 2009 when there was a dip. Effectively, we have been standing still on mathematics, but within dimensions of mathematics there was a more detailed study, and problem solving is a particular area where we have difficulty. It is consistent with the changes we are putting in place with project maths in post-primary schools which is seeking to address the type of issues that have been identified as being relatively deficient in the Irish school-going population. We have put a huge effort in project maths and the upskilling of teachers who teach maths in post-primary schools. The same is true of the new curriculum and the new junior certificate and leaving certificate subjects. It is also consistent with the overall approach we are taking on junior cycle reform where problem solving is an issue across the curriculum, not just in maths. We are very conscious of the messages we are getting from the OECD. That said, there are areas where we are doing relatively well.

For example, the improvement in science, which has shown up in the programme for international student assessment is very positive. It reflects the changes we put in place in the junior cycle curriculum ten and 15 years ago, and we have gone up a good deal relatively in science. There are different messages but there is a particular issue within mathematics that identifies the serious issue regarding problem solving we were-----