A State Examinations Commission has recently been established in Ireland. This new statutory body is responsible for the operation of all state examinations and has been set up to ease the administrative burden which the examination process causes for the Department of Education and Science (DES). The Commission has responsibilty for the hiring of supervisors and examiners, and for the content and layout of the papers for the Junior Certificate and Leaving Certificate examinations. 63
National Qualifications Framework
A national framework of qualifications is being introduced in Ireland. The aim is to develop a single, coherent qualifications system for all levels of education and training, and the development is also linked to the national objective of moving towards a 'lifelong learning society' and recognition of learning activity throughout life. Each of the ten levels of the framework is based on specified standards of knowledge and skills, which define the outcomes learners must achieve to gain qualifications at each level. They apply to qualifications obtained in a broad range of learning environments, including schools, the workplace, the community and colleges, from the most basic to the most advanced levels of learning. At each level, there will be one or more award types. The development is intended to provide a framework for existing qualifications and to provide a framework into which any newly developed qualifications will fit. The framework has been developed by the National Qualifications Authority of Ireland (NQAI). Further information is available from the NQAI's website at http://www.nqai.ie/
On completion of post-compulsory upper secondary education, students usually take one of three types of Leaving Certificate, either:
In other words, the Leaving Certificate examination is held at the end of a two-year course in the senior cycle in post-primary schools. It is the terminal examination of post-primary education. Students normally take the examination at the age of 17 or 18, after five or six years of post-primary education.27
Some students follow a Transition Year programme prior to commencing a two-year Leaving Certificate course. The Department of Education (DES) does not provide formal certification on completion of the Transition Year programme. However, schools continue to develop appropriate forms of certification to suit their students.10
For qualifications other than the Leaving Certificate, such as qualifications received as a result of apprenticeships and other types of work-related, vocational or workplace training for students aged 15/16+, the Qualifications (Education and Training) Bill 1999 proposed the introduction of a single national qualifications authority to oversee a national post-16 qualifications framework.11 See National Qualifications Authority of Ireland below.
National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA)
The NCCA was established in November 1987. Its brief is to advise the Minister for Education and Science on matters related to curriculum and assessment for early childhood, primary and post-primary education. The tasks given to the NCCA under the terms of the Education Act 19982 include:
In this context, NCCA is involved in:
The Minister for Education and Science appoints the Members of the Council for a three-year term of office. Currently, there are 22 members in all, coming from the various bodies that represent teachers, school managers, parents, employers and trade unions. Other members include Department of Education and Science (DES) representatives and nominees of the Minister. In addition, the NCCA has a small, full-time executive, professional and administrative staff, and is assisted by a number of part-time Education Officers. The latter are mainly subject specialists, usually appointed on a secondment basis to the NCCA. The NCCA works in close cooperation with officials of the Department of Education and Science (DES).5
The work of the NCCA is carried out by a number of specialist committees with the guidance of the Executive. The committees comprise teachers, inspectors, representatives of teacher unions and school managerial bodies, parent and subject associations and higher education interests including universities and other colleges. These committees draw up the syllabus or course for each subject, curriculum area or programme.5
In addition, there are two national agencies specifically concerned with awarding qualifications in the post-compulsory sector; both are funded by the DES. These are:
The National Council for Vocational Awards (NCVA)
The National Council for Vocational Awards (NCVA) sets, monitors and certificates standards for vocational education and training programmes. The NCVA was set up in 1991 and has established a vocational qualifications framework with four levels. Foundation level is for those students with no qualifications; level 1 provides an introduction to general vocational skills; level 2 is offered in a range of specific vocational areas. Success at this level can provide a route to higher education as well as to employment. Level 3, at master crafts/advanced vocational skills level, is being developed. Each award includes a vocational core plus broader skills (key skills) in such areas as communication and problem-solving. The standards for national vocational certificates are set by one of five boards of study, drawing on the expertise of industry, providers, trade unions and others. Some modules may be devised to meet local or regional needs. Much work has been done to align standards with those developed in the European Union for skilled and master crafts training. Certificates are built around eight modules. At level 2, they comprise five vocational modules, two general studies modules (comprising communication, information technology (IT), numeracy and a modern language) and a preparation for work module which includes structured work experience. Students may attend full-time or part-time and accumulate modules towards a full certificate. A module represents around 80 hours of directed learning time. National vocational certificates allow students to progress to employment. Owing to recent economic growth, more than 90 per cent of successful level 2 students find work. The NCVA draws together employers and educational interests through its council and its five boards of studies to consider both standards and qualifications.11
The National Qualifications Authority of Ireland
The National Qualifications Authority of Ireland replaced the National Council for Educational Awards - NCEA - in 2001. It is responsible for:
Further information is available online: http://www.nqai.ie/
See section 6.4.7 in addition.
The Leaving Certificate programmes offered during senior cycle education (see 6.4.1) have a particular emphasis on: the preparation of students for the requirements of further education or training, for employment and for their role as participative, enterprising citizens.6
The Leaving Certificate examinations have, as their stated aim, to prepare students for immediate entry into open society, including the world of work, or for proceeding to further education. They are used for a variety of purposes: for example, as an entry qualification for a range of third-level institutions including universities, and as a selection test for entry to many kinds of employment.10
Leaving Certificate (established)
The Leaving Certificate (established) is used for purposes of selection into further education, employment, training and higher education.6
Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP)
The Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (an intervention within the Leaving Certificate (established)) is also used for purposes of selection into further education, employment, training and higher education. In particular, the LCVP aims to foster in students a spirit of enterprise and initiative and to develop their interpersonal, vocational and technological skills.6
Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA)
The Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA) is intended to meet the needs of those students who either chose not to opt for other Leaving Certificate programmes or who are not adequately catered for by other Leaving Certificate programmes. While certification in the LCA is not a qualification for direct entry to third-level courses, students who successfully complete the programme are able to proceed to many post-Leaving Certificate courses.27
The LCA is designed for those not intending to go to third-level education and emphasises key transferable and personal skills.11
Vocational qualifications
Success in a level 2 qualification in the NCVA's vocational qualifications framework can provide a route to higher education as well as to employment. See 6.4.1 under the heading 'National Council for Vocational Awards (NCVA)' for further information.11
Continuous assessment
In addition, in general, schools continue to set their own internal twice-yearly tests (in December and May) as in the junior cycle (see section 6.3). Prior to the Leaving Certificate examination, the majority of schools also organise internal, formal pre-leaving examinations, with a view to assisting teachers and students to assess their performance levels.10
The vast majority of students completing senior cycle education (aged around 17/18) take one of the types of Leaving Certificate examinations available (see 6.4.1).
In addition, most students are involved in informal continuous teacher assessment, by school-based tests.
During both the Transition Year and the two-year Leaving Certificate courses, teachers administer informal, internal tests during the academic year and students progress automatically in other than exceptional circumstances. External examinations are taken at the end of the two-year-cycle or at various stages during the two-year programme in the case of the Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA). Assessment for the Leaving Certificate (established) and the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP) is based on written and, where appropriate, practical examinations, which are terminal. There is currently no school-based assessment component towards the Leaving Certificate courses. All assessment is external.9
Transition Year
Transition Year evaluation is school-based.10
Leaving Certificate (established) and the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP)
Assessment in the Leaving Certificate and the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme is mainly in the form of written examinations. An assessment of oral and aural proficiency is usually included in examinations in modern languages, and practical and written examinations are also usually included in music, art, woodwork and metalwork subjects.10
Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA)
Unlike the two other Leaving Certificate programmes, the LCA is cross-curricular and has a different form of assessment. This includes the accumulation of credits through three distinct and complementary modes:
A participant may accumulate a maximum of 200 credits. These credits are allocated on the following basis:
| Credits | Percentages | |
| Satisfactory completion of modules | 62 | 31% |
| Seven student tasks | 70 | 35% |
| Final examinations | 68 | 34% |
| (English and communications, 12 credits) (Vocational specialisms [two], 12 credits each) (Languages [two], 6 credits each) (Social education, 10 credits) (Mathematical applications, 10 credits)6 |
Certification is on the basis of overall performance and has three levels:
Continuous assessment
In addition, in general, schools also set internal twice-yearly tests (usually in December and May) in the senior cycle (as in the junior cycle, see section 6.3). Prior to the Leaving Certificate examination the majority of schools also organise formal, internal pre-leaving examinations, with a view to assisting teachers and students to assess their performance levels.10
The recently established State Examinations Commission is beginning to take over its responsibilities in the area of the administration of examinations. Information will be added to this website as it becomes available.
Leaving Certificate
The Leaving Certificate examination is overseen and administered by the Department of Education's Examinations Branch and the examinations are set and marked centrally. In addition, the Department of Education and Science (DES) oversees the invigilation of syllabuses and the moderation of grades, and awards certificates. The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) prepares syllabuses for the Leaving Certificate.26
The State Examinations Commission is beginning to take over responsibilities in this whole area.
Examination papers are prepared and produced by Inspectors in the Department of Education (DES), with assistance from specialists (mainly teachers) in each subject. The actual marking of candidates is undertaken by assistant examiners, who are generally experienced teachers in the particular subject, under the supervision of assisting advisory examiners, who are also experienced teachers. The work is overseen by a Chief Examiner who is usually an inspector in the DES.10,26
To ensure that the work of each student is marked in the same manner, a marking scheme is prepared for each examination. This marking scheme is much more detailed than the marks shown for each question on the examination paper and deals with the possible ways of answering each question. The marking scheme is prepared by the full team of examiners at conferences held shortly after the examinations. This allows account to be taken of observations on the question paper by the teacher association for the subject and other interested parties. Marking schemes for each subject are subsequently published by the Department of Education (DES).26
The marking of examination work is supervised by the Chief Examiner and advising examiners, who ensure that all examiners mark in accordance with the marking scheme. At various stages during the marking process, examiners submit examples of students' work which they have marked. They also supply statistics on the marks being awarded to enable ongoing monitoring of the marking process to take place.26
When an examiner has completed the marking of a student's paper, he/she records these marks on a marking sheet. This marking sheet is returned to the Department of Education's Examinations Branch, where a number of clerical checks are carried out. The student's total mark for each component of a subject (oral test, aural test, practical test - where applicable, Paper 1, Paper 2, etc.) is keyed into the computer system and then keyed in a second time, by a different operator, to ensure accuracy. (If a mark required to produce a grade is absent, the record of attendance is checked to confirm that the student did not attend for that part of the examination. Where necessary, clarification is sought from the school.)26
Each examination centre is supervised by a superintendent appointed by the Department of Education (DES). The superintendent oversees the running of the examinations. This includes distributing question papers and answer books, ensuring that the examinations start and finish at the correct times, and that candidates have a calm and quiet environment in which to sit their examinations.26
While the questions on examination papers change from year to year, the papers generally follow a particular format and layout. Whenever a significant change in layout is planned, or a new syllabus is introduced, the DES provides samples of the changed format to schools well in advance of the examinations.26
Leaving Certificate and the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme
Student performance in the examinations for the Leaving Certificate (established) and the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP) ('ordinary' and 'higher' courses) is recorded on a schedule of letter grades (where A is high), as set out below:
| A1 (90-100%) | B1 (80-84%) | C1 (65-69%) | D1 (50-54%) | E (25-39%) |
| A2 (85-89%) | B2 (75-79%) | C2 (60-64%) | D2 (45-49%) | F (10-24%) |
| B3 (70-74%) | C3 (55-59%) | D3 (40-44%) | NG (No Grade, 0-9%) |
The Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA)
Assessment for the LCA involves the accumulation of credits (for full details, see section 6.4.4) and the Leaving Certificate Applied is awarded at three levels:
Transfer to third-level education (higher education) in Ireland is very competitive. Students compete for entry to autonomous third-level education institutions based on points accrued from their results in the Leaving Certificate examinations. In January of each year, students complete application forms ranking their course and institution preferences. When examination results are processed, the grades from a student's six best subject scores, at least two of which must be at higher level, are converted into points. To achieve a place on the most sought after programmes, students' points scores need to be very high. Students with lesser results may be offered programmes further down their preference rankings. Applications for almost all full-time undergraduate courses are made through a Central Applications Office (CAO) (http://www.cao.ie/).
General
Under the Education Act 19982 , students aged 18 or over have a right of access to their own school records. The rights of students younger than 18 are exercised by their parents.21
Leaving Certificate
All students successfully completing the Leaving Certificate (established), the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP), or the Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA) receive the Leaving Certificate of the Department of Education and Science (DES) (awarded by the DES). Participants who leave school before completing any of the three programmes, may receive a 'Record of Experience'.6
The Education Act 1998 allows the Minister of Education and Science to prevent publication of the overall results in any year of students in a particular school in a particular examination, such as the Leaving Certificate examination. Similarly, the Minister of Education and Science may also prevent the publication of the comparative overall results in any year of students in different schools in any examination.2
Since the summer of 1999, all students have been able to view their marked examination papers from the Leaving Certificate, the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP) or the Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA). This initiative was originally introduced in 1998 in some subjects and extended to all Leaving Certificate subjects in 1999. When candidates receive their Leaving Certificate results, they also receive notification of the specific day or days on which they can view their marked papers at their school. Candidates then make individual arrangements with their school to view their papers.16
Once they have seen their examination scripts, students wishing to appeal the result can pay the Department of Education to recheck the results of their Leaving Certificate examinations. Rechecking is available to all examination candidates in September of the year in which they took the original examination.10
Inspectors are the main link between the schools and the Department of Education and Science (DES). Their duties include the inspection and evaluation of teachers, advice on the planning of curricula and the administration of tests and examinations. The Inspectorate does not monitor standards of attainment in a systematic way or report on whether standards are improving or deteriorating. However, since the publication of annual reviews of the Leaving Certificate examinations (see 6.4.1), much greater analysis takes place. The Inspectorate now reviews the levels of success and failure in each subject annually.11
Vocational qualifications
There is no publication of results nationally.11
In 1999 around 64,000 students received a Leaving Certificate, 10,100 the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP), 2,200 the Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA) (an increase of around 25 per cent from the previous year) and 51,700 the established Leaving Certificate.16
In other words, the LCVP and the LCA accounted for around 20 per cent of students taking a Leaving Certificate.16
Traditionally, the third-level education system in Ireland has comprised the university sector, the technological sector and colleges of education, all of which are substantially funded by the State and are autonomous and self-governing. In addition, in particular in recent years, a number of independent private colleges have developed, offering a range of mainly business-related courses conferring professional qualifications and, in some instances, recognised diplomas and degrees.27
Numbers in third-level education had grown from 18,500 in 1965 to more than 100,000 in 1995. These rapidly-growing numbers reflect increasing retention rates in second-level education, demographic trends and increasing transfer rates into third-level education. Presently, nearly half of young people advance to third-level education, with around half of these taking degree-level programmes.27
In 1997:
Currently, around 78 per cent of students remain in school after compulsory education (age 15+). A further 18 per cent transfer to vocational training programmes.10
Around 50 per cent of any age group do not achieve sufficient points in the senior Leaving Certificate to progress to higher education.11
Ireland continues to have a very high drop-out rate among young people in secondary education. As a result, a large proportion of students leave school without any formal qualifications. It is estimated that each year approximately 23 per cent of secondary-level school-leavers are either unqualified or have only the minimum Junior Certificate (taken at age 15). Currently, there are approximately 120,000 young people with minimal or no educational qualifications and these increase by approximately 8,000 a year. The majority of these young people come from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds.11
The number of students completing upper secondary education has, however, been improving. A EUROSTAT report shows that of those aged 25 to 29 in 1999, 60 per cent had completed upper secondary education, compared to only 26 per cent of those aged between 50 and 64 years of age.59