Serious questions need to be asked about the structure and resourcing of single sex schools by the department, according to Social Democrats TD Jen Cummins.<\/p>\n
Deputy Cummins said:<\/p>\n
\u201cThe findings published today should make everyone in education policy stop and think – we\u2019ve known for some time that same-sex schooling can limit subject choice, especially in STEM, but seeing it laid out so starkly in 2025 should be a wake-up call.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe I Wish survey revealed that girls in all-female schools continue to face greater barriers to studying science, technology, engineering, and maths subjects.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Department needs to assess with schools whether their structures and their resources are holding students back.<\/p>\n
\u201cDr Katriona O\u2019Sullivan\u2019s STEM Passport for Inclusion programme has transformed opportunities for thousands of young women across the country – it\u2019s proof that change is both possible and powerful.<\/p>\n
\u201cHer research and her leadership demonstrate that when girls are given equal access, mentorship and belief, they excel. The success of her initiative should be the model for the future.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Maynooth University initiative has engaged more than 5,000 girls from disadvantaged schools, providing accredited STEM qualifications and industry mentoring – this evidence-based approach should guide national policy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to stop patching around the edges – it\u2019s time for a serious review of how our school structures, including single-sex education, shape subject choice and student confidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cEquality of access must be built into the system, not left to the efforts of a few visionary educators.<\/p>\n
\u201cIreland cannot afford to ignore the link between structural inequality and the country\u2019s future competitiveness. STEM is where the jobs of tomorrow are. If girls are being locked out of those opportunities because of outdated traditions in our school system, we are failing them and we\u2019re failing our economy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Minister for Education must now take leadership and phase out a model that belongs to another era – every girl in Ireland deserves the same chance to explore her potential, whether that\u2019s in physics, coding or engineering.\u201d<\/p>\n
October 21st, 2025<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Serious questions need to be asked about the structure and resourcing of single sex schools by the department, according to Social Democrats TD Jen Cummins. Deputy Cummins said: \u201cThe findings published today should make everyone in education policy stop and think – we\u2019ve known for some time that same-sex schooling can limit subject choice, especially […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":11586,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[218,581,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14095","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-education","category-jen-cummins","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n