A North Clare principal believes there will be ‘a battle down the road’ to successfully implement proposed Leaving Cert reform.
A shake-up of the exams will see continuous assessment making up 40 per cent of marks from 2024, and there’s been mixed reaction to the news in this county.
Minister for Education Norma Foley’s announced sweeping changes to the Leaving Cert exams to take effect from 2024, with written exams to only be worth 60 percent of marks in all subjects.
40 percent of exam marks in all subjects will be by continuous assessment.
Leaving Cert students will also sit Paper One of the English and Irish exams at the end of fifth year.
Principal of Ennistymon CBS, Mary Lyons, is broadly welcoming the changes – but believes much talk and discussion between the Department and teachers is needed.
The Chair of the Clare branch of the TUI, meanwhile, feels the introduction of two new Leaving Cert subjects by 2024 is potentially ‘too ambitious’.
The introduction of both ‘Drama, Film and Theatre Studies’; and ‘Climate Action and Sustainable Development’ are to be rolled out in two years’ time as part of the reform.
Kate Hehir, who teaches in St. Michael’s Community College in Kilmihil, believes bringing in new subjects quickly is a big ask for teachers.
Student representatives, however, are broadly welcoming the plans, saying it will help ease pressure on exam pupils.
MollyJane Sweeney, who’s Clare’s Regional Office with the Irish Second Level Students Union and a student at St Joseph’s Secondary School in Tulla, believes a way needs to be found to make the new system work.
