Mary McCarthy: Standard of parenting, not schooling, is the biggest factor holding children back

A good home life, free from financial worries, is a foundation all children need if they are to excel in school. Photo posed/Getty

Mary McCarthy

While the majority of students who just finished their Leaving Cert will progress to third-level – and we send the highest number in the EU – this does not mean we have equality of opportunity in our educational system.

Parenting still plays the strongest hand. This is something any teacher will tell you, and it was confirmed in a report last week.