Student Voice Matters. Clarity provided for Leaving Certificate Students, work still remains

“A decision taken with the best interests of students at heart”. The Minister for Education and Skills, Joe McHugh TD, has today confirmed the Leaving Certificate Established and Leaving Certificate Applied examinations will not be taking place in the traditional manner this year.

The Irish Second-Level Students’ Union (ISSU) has welcomed this clarity, and has acknowledged the significant work by the Department of Education and Skills in thoughtfully engaging with the ISSU through the forum of the advisory group which has been pivotal  in recent weeks. 

Active student representation as a true partner in education is fundamental to the Education (Student and Parent Charter) Bill, 2019. The advisory group has collaborated and productively engaged with all stakeholders and the ISSU looks forward to continued engagement with the Department on this and other matters. 

Definite clarity surrounding the examination intentions has come as great relief to many students . It is clear that student’s well-being, anxiety and stress levels have been at an all time high - and young people should seek the support available to them. The ISSU has seen unprecedented engagement rates over the past number of months and overwhelming response from all students. 

Speaking after today’s announcement, Ciara Fanning (ISSU President) said:

“Actively engaging with students through structured dialogue can bring about unprecedented change for unprecedented times. We will continue to represent students to ensure fairness and equity in the revised decision. We’re inspired by the engagement levels we’ve seen in recent weeks and following this crisis we will begin highlighting our campaign for modernisation of the Senior Cycle programme”.

Guidance provided by the Department of Education on how calculated grades will work.

ISSU Survey May 2020 Results: Class of 2020 has their say on Leaving Certificate

A second examination online survey by the Irish Second-Level Students’ Union (ISSU), conducted over 4 days between May 1st and May 5th 2020, has indicated that the majority of students are still in favour of the cancellation of exams. 

Almost 24,000 final year examination students participated in the survey, where almost 79% of students were in favour of cancellation of exams, and for a predicted grading model to be used. This represents a 20-point shift towards cancellation in comparison to a previous ISSU survey, conducted between March 26th and April 1st. In this survey just 49% of students chose cancellation as a first preference, which increased to 58% when June exams were ruled out. 

Just 15% of students were in favour of the current proposal of starting exams on July 29th. The ISSU previously came out against this decision, particularly with the lack of clarity around projects and practicals, issues related to the digital divide, and a lack of welfare support available for students. 

The ISSU notes the concerns of these students regarding predicted grades. It is clear that the predicted grading model needs to be developed, but it must ensure fairness and equity. 

Students were also asked to show how satisfied or dissatisfied they felt on a scale of 1-10 with the 2 main options in the survey; 

An average of 3.24/10 was recorded for the continuation of the exams.

An average of 8.02/10 was noted for cancellation of exams and use of a predicted grade model. 

Ciara Fanning, President, provided this comment regarding the survey: 

“The ISSU is continuing to advocate for and representing the interests of second-level through our involvement in the Department of Education & Skills Advisory meetings which have taken place over the past number of weeks. Student's are a fundamental stakeholder in this process and we are engaging with other Stakeholders to help to bring much needed clarity to this unprecedented situation. This survey reinforces our mandate for clarification now - particularly as an increasing number of students are now in favour of cancellation and a thoughtful process established to ensure fairness and equity to all. Now is not the time for tradition, we need cohesive innovation amongst all stakeholders - this is not a political issue. We are particularly concerned about the mental health and anxiety issues brought to our attention by students in overwhelming numbers and seek to actively engage with the Department and other stakeholders to work together in unity for more palatable clarity for all and explore all possible contingencies for the class of 2020".

The survey size represents a sample of almost 39% of all Leaving Certificate students. Students following both the traditional Leaving Certificate and Leaving Certificate Applied were included in the survey. 

The ISSU received over 28,000 responses, including those from teachers, parents and students in other school years After these were removed and all results analysed, 23,694 were deemed valid. 

The ISSU continues to engage with the Department of Education & Skills and other stakeholders to find a solution that will put student welfare and equity at the heart of any final decision. The results of this survey will feed into the organisation’s input at all future meetings, and the ISSU wishes to thank all those who participated and shared the survey. 

The raw data analysed in the poll can be seen below

ISSU Leaving Certificate Examinations Survey - May 2020

The ISSU wishes to continually engage with students and encourage student participation regarding the developing 2020 State Examinations planning.

Clarity has now been given regarding the Junior Certificate and announcements have been made regarding the proposed Leaving Certificate Examinations plan. The ISSU is working with the Department and other education stakeholders in a weekly structured working group regarding the State Examinations, and wishes to continually bring student voice to this. We are listening, we are raising your concerns, asking the questions and continually advocating that student voice is heard within these meetings. The ISSU greatly appreciates all of the student communications received over the last number of weeks and wish to continue this to strengthen the student voice in progressing development of solutions for the 2020 Leaving Certificate.

Given the continuing change of circumstances, and the most recent announcements regarding the extension of social distancing guidelines, the ISSU wishes to consult with all 6th year students.

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Junior Cert - Final Proposal

The ISSU welcomes the decision, by Minister Joe McHugh,on the revised arrangements for the Junior Certificate State Examinations previously deferred to Autumn 2020. The decision has been made to allow schools to make the final decision in assessing and reporting on students achievements and learning .

ISSU members,from the Junior Certificate cohort, were overwhelmingly in favour of cancellation of examinations. 77% of Junior Cycle participants, who responded to the ISSU survey on State Examinations, selected the cancellation of examinations as their first preference. While predicted grading will not be used in the current model, the Department has specified that “schools will be given the autonomy to decide whether to run school-based assessments and what form they take.” Junior Cycle students will receive a written report outlining the broad range of learning they have completed throughout the three year programme. 

The ISSU also welcomes clarification that the Department of Education & Skills will provide state certification for completion of the Junior Certificate programme, which is pivotal for students who may choose alternative routes of education and training after completion of this milestone. 

I am in Junior Certificate, what do I do now? 

Your school will now begin to plan how they are going to complete the assessment and reporting of students' learning and achievements. Schools currently have a reporting mechanism in place and additional resources will be made available to schools to assist in this process. 

Assessment reports may be completed based on work completed prior to the school closures and the teachers professional knowledge of each students’ learning and achievement. Schools may want to continue with some form of additional assessment or end of year assignment.The options for assessment are outlined in the Department of Education and Skills official statement. In circumstances where students are unable to undertake any additional assessment due to issues arising from the Covid-19 crisis the assessment of students’ learning and report on achievement may be solely based on the work completed prior to the closure of schools.We encourage schools to be mindful and aware of the digital divide, special educational needs and resources available to students at home, if they decide to use assignments to make up the final grade. 

We encourage students to contact their own schools with their views on the possibility of exams being held, to bring these views also to the student council, and to liaise with parents and guardians to ensure that this voice is strengthened and united. 

Below is the press release in full from the Department of Education, dated 29th April 2020. 

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- All third year Junior Cycle students to be awarded certificates for the completion of Junior Cycle by the Department of Education and Skills

- Schools given autonomy to assess students and all students to receive a report on achievement

- Adult learners to be given opportunity to take final Junior Cycle examinations in autumn

The Minister for Education and Skills Joe McHugh TD has today (Wednesday 29 April 2020) announced revised arrangements for this year’s Junior Cycle.

The decision was taken following recommendations from an advisory group of stakeholders as part of planning for the State Examinations in response to the Covid-19 public health measures and the decision that the Junior Cycle State Examinations will not run this year.

Minister McHugh attended the meeting of the advisory group and thanked the members for their work.

Minister McHugh said:

“In this difficult time for students I have listened to the very strongly-held and well-articulated views of students, parents and other stakeholders,”

“This decision has been made with the health and wellbeing of students, parents and teachers at the forefront of our thinking.

“It gives students and their families more clarity and certainty. It also gives schools freedom to decide how best to assess the progress of students following three years of hard work and learning.”

Under the revised arrangements and in light of the exceptional circumstances presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the work and achievement of third year Junior Cycle students will be recognised with a state certificate from the Department of Education and Skills.

As soon as possible after the end of the current school year, students will receive a written school report on their learning achievements in each subject, short course and/or priority learning unit

Schools are also being given autonomy to decide whether to run school-based assessments and what form they take. Options to consider include school-designed examinations, tasks, projects, assignments, essay style questions, presentations, or other tasks agreed at a local level. Guidance for schools on reporting to students and parents, developed with the advice of the advisory group of stakeholders, will be published by the Department.

The State Examinations Commission is also being asked to put in place specific arrangements for adult learners to give them an opportunity to take final Junior Cycle examinations for which they are entered in autumn 2020

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Officer Blog: President - Ciara Fanning

Hi everyone! I'm Ciara and I'm the outgoing President of the ISSU.

I wanted to run for this role because I had just completed my term as International Officer and I had some amazing chances to meet so many great student activists from all over the world during that year. This was hugely motivational for me and inspired me to run for the leadership of ISSU. This decision was one of the best I've ever made, as the past year has provided me with so many fantastic opportunities and experiences that I would never have had otherwise, and I can confidently say that I am leaving the role with a whole variety of new skills that I have picked up throughout my term as President. Something I am particularly proud of this year is completing 17 Regional Councils across the country, and electing 36 fantastic Regional Officers. We have worked really hard to increase grassroots engagement this year, something that I had as a key issue in my manifesto for election, and an initiative that is crucial to our existence as a union. 

As President I've had many public speaking and representative opportunities, and this has been a huge learning curve for me. 

Some advice that I would have for anyone thinking of running for President is to really consider how much you're willing to contribute to the union, as it is really important that the President is willing to prioritise ISSU. Delegation is also crucial to a successful term, and learning to rely on your NSE is incredibly valuable."

For more info on how to run for the NSE click here. Deadline for nominations is the 26th of April!

Officer Blogs: Deputy President - Chloe Griffin

In the lead up to our Online Annual Assembly, our current NSE want to give our members and potential candidates an insight into their roles. Here we have our Deputy President, Chloe Griffin from Tipperary.

Hey everyone! My name is Chloe and over the past year I have been the Deputy President of the ISSU. 

Even though anyone running for this year's NSE won't be running for the role of Deputy specifically I hope this blog gives you another insight of what to expect if you are running in the presidential race. As you will have seen, there is no direct race for the role of Deputy President and so, this role is automatically given to the runner up in the Presidential race. I ran in this race last April because of the potential that I knew ISSU had and because I wanted to really build on the work that the union had done in the past which I had been so lucky to be involved in. 

As deputy president, you feed into a lot of the work that the organisation does as a whole. There have been so many fantastic moments for ISSU this year and it’s hard to choose one that stands out. 

When we set out to plan this year, grassroots engagement was top of our list of things that we wanted to improve on. We carried out 17 regional councils, electing 36 regional officers which has had such an incredible impact and has really helped us to reach out to more students, increase our membership and get more students involved in our events and realising their voice. We even expanded our Skills Academy to Munster this year which we hope will continue to grow and grow. I was also really happy to lead on the reform of the ISSU constitution this year and I’m really excited to put it forward to our members at an EGM once we get the opportunity post COVID-19. Of course, the last couple of weeks have really been ground breaking for student voice in Ireland. Students have not been shy in voicing their opinions and getting really engaged with us which is one of the most rewarding things to see as an NSE member. 

For anyone thinking of running for the role of President, you do need to be prepared for the possibility of being Deputy. The biggest difference between the two is really that the President is the face of the organisation and the deputy is by their side every step of the way but in more of a ‘behind the scenes’ role. There is a huge amount of work involved in the role and it is very unpredictable. It’s so important to ensure that you have the time and most importantly the passion to dedicate to this position if you are thinking of running, balancing everything is difficult but it’s doable for sure. This year our President, Ciara, and I pretty much worked together on everything apart from a few individual projects here and there. A huge part of the role is supporting the president and also the NSE, I’m so proud of everything we have achieved as an NSE this year. We have set a lot of groundwork for the organisation going forward and we have had so many amazing students get involved along the way. 

If you’re thinking of running in the presidential race, it's vital that you have a really good understanding of the organisation and that you have a couple of really clear goals that you think will take this union one step further. You also need to make sure you have the time and the dedication to put into it. There are so many things that are done in the background that you don’t see on social media and it’s something to be aware of if you’re considering running. Media and the more glam side of the role are really very small components of the work involved overall. If you have any questions about the role feel free to send me an email, chloe.griffin@issu.ie 

I’m so excited for our Annual Assembly on the 9th of May and I wish anyone running in the presidential race and other NSE positions, the very best of luck. Putting yourself out there and creating a great campaign is hard work but it's completely worth it no matter the outcome. You should be really proud of yourself for wanting to get involved and for wanting to lead change. 

For more info on how to run for the NSE click here. Deadline for nominations is the 26th of April!