NI Conservatives’ spokeswoman for education, Annika Nestius-Brown, has said that the Northern Ireland Auditor General’s report into literacy and numeracy shows that schools should be allowed the freedom to emphasise “getting the basics right”.
“While we have many excellent schools and excellent teachers, it’s deeply worrying that 2 out of 5 pupils are leaving full-time education without reaching a good standard of literacy and numeracy”, Annika said. “This statistic shows that schools must be allowed to concentrate on providing students with the basic skills which every young person needs.”
“The minister intends to introduce an ‘entitlement framework’ later this year, which will force schools to provide more courses for children aged 14 and over. That will put further strain on resources and staff, when we should be making sure that every pupil leaves the education system with the basic skills they need to get a job and to get on in life.”
“John O’Dowd seems to think that every school can be forced into a single mould. NI Conservatives believe that that is a dangerous idea. We don’t think that there is a single pathway to success which suits every child. Schools should have the freedom to emphasise different skills in their curricula, while making sure that every pupil leaves with a good grasp of the basics.”