asked the Minister for Education if he will make arrangements to permit the awarding of the leaving certificate to students who pass the leaving certificate examination set up by his Department, even though they may have already left school to take up a position at the time pupils were being entered for the certificate examination by the Manager of the school they had been attending.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Leaving Certificate Examination.
72.
In accordance with the purpose of the leaving certificate which is to testify to the satisfactory completion of a course in secondary education, only recognised secondary school pupils who have pursued an approved course as senior pupils for two years and who have been entered by the managers of the schools they have been attending are eligible for admission to the examination for the award of the certificate. I do not propose to alter the regulations in this regard.
Pupils who have not followed an approved course of the required duration may sit for the leaving certificate examination in any particular subject or subjects and be awarded marks therein. Such candidates are given a statement of their marks in the subjects concerned.
Does the Minister think it a reasonable arrangement that a student who attends secondary school from the first year to the sixth year and in January of that year leaves school to take up a position, gets leave of absence from his employer to do the leaving certificate, reaches honours standard in several subjects, will not be awarded the certificate but only some sort of statement to the effect that he has attained this standard? This statement is of no use to him if at some future date he wishes to attend university.
The Deputy is making a very long statement himself.
Yes, indeed, but I wanted to make that statement.
I think the statement the Deputy refers to would be accepted by the university.