Catholic schools should focus on mercy over results

Catholic schools should not be governed by league tables or results, but by mercy and inclusion, according to the head of the Catholic primary schools body.

Fr Tom Deenihan, General Secretary of the Catholic Primary Schools Management Association (CPSMA), said the danger of focusing on league tables is that “we would value the educationally gifted and shun those not so”. “Can society say that we must value all students equally, as they should and must, and at the same time become fascinated with league tables that treat schools with students who are not as academically gifted unfavourably?” he asked.

Speaking at the launch of Catholic Schools Week  in Mount Mercy College, Cork, Fr Deenihan said “a Catholic school must treat all its’ students equally, must value all the different talents and abilities of its’ students equally and, if it were to be biased at all, would be biased in favour of the weak”.