Sir, – School league tables are nonsensical as they fail to control for variables that might affect a school’s “performance”. Unfortunately they affect perceptions of schools and therefore manufacture their own importance.
Reading Prof John O'Hagan's opinion piece "Falling college rankings not all about money" (September 7th), in which he describes the processes whereby QS university rankings are calculated, it seems to me that they are just as fatuous as those for second-level schools, though unfortunately just as "important". – Yours, etc,
TERRY DOLAN
Castleknock,
Dublin 15.
Sir, – I am not convinced that the use of league tables in measuring the performance of our universities is a reliable barometer as to how well they are performing. Having said that, I found it incredible that Trinity College Dublin, that cradle of intellectual thought, was placed 98th in the recent QS world rankings. The alma mater of Wilde and Beckett now finds itself languishing just inside the top 100 universities with the likes of Birmingham, Southampton and Leeds.
It is recognised that league tables alone cannot provide a true measure of performance, but they can offer an indication of a trend, and regrettably Trinity in recent years has failed to get a seat on the top table of academic excellence.
Policymakers and opinion-formers should stop sitting on their hands and get a grip in addressing this humiliating situation.
Come on Trinity, you can do better than this. – Yours, etc,
FRANK GREANEY,
Formby,
Liverpool.