Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 6 October 2004
237 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Education and Science the number of children at primary school level experiencing reading difficulties in mild, moderate or severe form; the number experiencing such difficulty five years ago; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23780/04]
View answerMy Department conducts periodic surveys of reading literacy from which estimates of the number of children at primary level who experience reading difficulties can be derived. A national assessment of English reading at primary level was carried out in March 2004 by the educational research centre on behalf of my Department. This will enable comparisons to be made with the results of the previous survey which was conducted in 1998. The results of this survey will not be available until March 2005.
It is assumed, and national surveys of reading support the assumption, that at any time about 10% of pupils will experience difficulty in reading relative to their peers. It is estimated that approximately 1% to 1.5% have severe reading difficulties. Surveys of reading literacy conducted since 1972 suggest that these levels of reading achievement have remained constant since 1980.
At post-primary level, the reading literacy of 15 year old students was assessed in 2000 as part of the Programme for International Student Assessment, or PISA. This programme was administered in 27 OECD countries. Ireland ranked fifth overall in terms of mean achievement with just one country, Finland, achieving a significantly higher mean score. At the lowest level of proficiency, level one or below, Ireland had a relatively low percentage of students,11%, as opposed to the OECD average of 17.9%. Ireland participated in the second round of PISA during 2003 and the results of this will be released by the OECD on 7 December 2004.
