TUI reiterates its insistence on State certification and external assessment for all components of Senior Cycle 

By piofficer, Tuesday, 29th March 2022 | 0 comments

Responding to today’s publication of the Senior Cycle Review Advisory Report, the Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) has said that there is a lack of realisation of the capability of the system to deliver Senior Cycle reform given the teacher recruitment and retention crisis and the shameful underinvestment in education over many years.  

The union has said that it will continue to engage in a meaningful, professional way with the review process in the hope that necessary clarifications will be brought forward.    

The union has also stated that any changes to the current model must be educationally sound, must retain the public’s high level of trust and must not add to the workload of teachers.   

Throughout its involvement with the process to date, the TUI has emphasised the need for positive improvement in Senior Cycle whilst also ensuring that widely recognised existing strengths such as the high level of trust in state certification, as acknowledged by the Minister, are maintained.  

Comments from TUI General Secretary Michael Gillespie:   

State certification must be retained     

‘Our overall position remains clear and unambiguous – State certification is key to all developments and must be retained. TUI members are fundamentally opposed to assessing their own students for State certificate purposes and therefore external assessment and State certification – which retain significant public trust – are essential for all written examinations and all additional components of assessment.’  

Appropriate resourcing essential     

‘A condition of any change is the provision of appropriate resources, infrastructure and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for all members. School communities are already straining under the weight of initiative overload and any reforms must not increase workload. The precedent of ‘professional time’, established in the reform of the Junior Cycle, is critical in this regard and has been accepted as a necessary element.     

In terms of resourcing, it would be remiss of us not to draw attention to the most recent Education At A Glance report, which shows Ireland’s spend at second level to be the lowest of the countries for which figures are provided. The TUI will insist that any change be appropriately and fully resourced.’     

Most subjects already have a second assessment component     

‘Contrary to some common but flawed commentary, it is important to highlight that Senior Cycle subjects are continually evolving, with most already having additional components of assessment, such as project, oral or practical work. All subjects, after a review process, will have at least one additional component of assessment. In discussions, we will insist that these be appropriate and useful in the particular subject. The TUI welcomes the value of additional components of assessment being set at a minimum of 40% of the overall grade.’  

Reform must cater for all students     

‘Any reform of Senior Cycle must cater for all students and their individual talents. The TUI welcomes the availability of Transition Year in all schools from 2024, which removes of unequal treatment of students depending on the size or location of their school.  

We welcome the removal of barriers and ‘ringfencing’ of Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA) and Leaving Cert Vocational Programme (LCVP), which will give parity of esteem and promote equity across all schools. This will offer enhanced opportunities for all students. For example, this would allow students to undertake some subjects at a level which would allow easier access into an apprenticeship. We will insist that reform must not marginalise or exclude any cohort of learners; it must be inclusive in nature.’     

Leaving Cert/Senior Cycle should not be confused with the ‘points race’     

‘The excessive focus on CAO points is not a flaw of the senior cycle itself. It is instead a by-product of a national obsession with progression to third level that distorts the true meaning of education and often leads to invalid and unfair comparisons between schools.’    

Longitudinal study on Junior Cycle must be completed 

‘As we have continually stated, it is essential that a longitudinal study of the effectiveness and impacts of the revised Junior Cycle be completed. This is needed to guide the review process of Senior Cycle, ensuring that wise decisions are made. It would be foolhardy to embark on another a series of reforms without first taking stock of the effects, whether positive or negative, of the revised Junior Cycle programme on teaching and learning. Otherwise, we may fail to recognise what has worked and we risk repeating mistakes.

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