Ireland invests less in education than any other OECD country, according to an OECD report.
The organisation's latest Education at a Glance report places Ireland last out of 34 countries when it comes to the proportion of its GDP that it invests in education.
It shows that while on average OECD countries spend the equivalent of 5.7% of GDP on education from early childhood to third level, Ireland spends just 2.8%.
The data is based on 2021 figures.
The report also states that while education expenditure relative to GDP remained stable between 2015 and 2021, it "fell most noticeably in Ireland, Latvia and Mexico".
It concludes that the lowest levels of Government expenditure in education were found in Ireland, Japan and the UK.
GDP in Ireland is inflated by the effect of the multinational sector here, so is often not seen as a good measure of the size of the Irish economy.
Ireland spends 1% of GDP on primary education, compared to the OECD average of 1.4%.
Reacting to the report, John Boyle, the General Secretary of the INTO, the primary teachers’ union, said there was an urgent need for the Government to reduce class sizes and increase funding for primary and special education to meet the OECD average in Budget 2025.
"Primary schools are operating under severe financial constraints, struggling to cover basic running costs. The Government’s continued underfunding not only places undue pressure on schools but also compromises the quality of education for our children," he said.
Among the union’s demands is a 20% increase in day-to-day funding for schools.
Ireland spends 0.9% of GDP on second-level education, compared to the OECD average of 1.9%.
The Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) said the funding situation was "particularly dire at second level, with Ireland’s spend (0.9%) the lowest of the 34 countries for which figures are provided, trailing far behind the OECD average of 1.9%".
TUI President David Waters said the low level of funding at third level, at just half the OECD average, was "a shameful legacy of a refusal at political level to address the sector’s funding crisis in any meaningful way".
"Too many schools and colleges lack the facilities required by modern education methodologies, while the continuing failure to restore middle-management structures in schools has made it more and more difficult to help those students who are experiencing a range of difficulties in schools," he said.
Kieran Christie, the General Secretary of the ASTI, the second level teachers’ union, said: "It is shameful to see that once again Ireland is languishing at the bottom of the table for investment in education. The Government must commit to closing this investment gap between Ireland and the rest of the world in Budget 2025.
"Modern curricula require that a significant amount of practical, scientific and experiential work occurs in classrooms every day. This is not sustainable in overcrowded classes and under-resourced schools."
