Irish primary school class sizes are among the largest in the OECD, a new report has revealed.
The report, Education at a Glance 2009, surveyed 30 countries which make up the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and found that Irish primary schools have 24.5 pupils per class, four more than in other EU countries.
In the EU, Britain is the only country with larger class sizes, while in the OCED, Japan, Korea and Turkey also have more pupils per class.
The smallest average class size was 21.4 pupils, with the average among the EU 19 countries at 20.2. The smallest class size was seen in Luxembourg, where there are an average of 15.6 pupils per class.
However, the report may not be showing the full extent of the problem, the Irish National Teachers' Organisation said today, pointing out that the figures contained in the report do not take account of increases in class numbers this month.
"The situation on the ground in schools is actually worse than the report suggests," said incoming general secretary Sheila Nunan.
"In 1999 average class size stood at 25.6 so in one decade there has been a reduction of one pupil per class on average. "That shows the government's shocking lack of progress on this issue."
Ms Nunan said the introduction of the primary school curriculum 10 years ago meant smaller classes would be needed
"These have not been delivered. Neither have class sizes been reduced enough to accommodate children with special needs and non-English speakers," she said.
Irish primary school teachers also spend more time teaching than teachers in other countries, at 946 hours per year. The average time spent teaching was 798 hours, according the the survey, ranging from less than 650 hours in Denmark and Turkey to more than 1,000 in the US.
Fine Gael's education and science spokesman Brian Hayes said the report was a wake-up call in preparation for the Budget.
"Up to now, Batt O'Keeffe has claimed that the issue of class size in Ireland is no different to any other EU country. Today's OECD report totally demolishes the Minister's claim," he said.
"Class size does matter. The OECD report is a snapshot of how we fare in comparison to other education systems. That comparison is pretty grim reading for an education system that is under-funded historically.
"Frontline services in education need to be safeguarded and, unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be happening under the current Government."