Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

24. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his views on whether the ability of the economy to create and sustain jobs is being hampered by the issues highlighted in the OECD programme for the international assessment of adult competencies which indicated worrying trends in relation to skill levels in the Irish workforce; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12161/14]

Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Ireland's performance in the programme for the international assessment of adult competencies (PIAAC) survey was mixed. While I am encouraged that progress is being made on the adult literacy front, with a four percentage point drop in the proportion of Irish adults scoring at or below level one, the results of the PIAAC survey has reinforced my view that we need to work hard on core skills.

There is a need for a distinction to be drawn between the core skills being measured in the PIAAC survey and some of the specialist skills that drive Ireland's well-performing international sectors. Nonetheless, I am intensifying efforts on core skills development through the implementation of the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategy and the Further Education and Training Strategy developed by SOLAS.