Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 24 March 2021
924. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Education if measures can be taken to provide State recognition for end of year exams that will be completed by those schoolchildren who were due to do sit the junior certificate in 2021; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15384/21]
View answerAs part of the Government Decision on 17 February last, the normal Junior Cycle Examination processes for 2021 were cancelled.
Given the priority that needed to be accorded to the Leaving Certificate examinations and the challenge associated with running them, it was not considered feasible to run a set of Junior Cycle Examinations also.
This decision followed intensive engagement with education stakeholders bilaterally and through the Planning for State Examinations 2021 Advisory Group and sub-group.
In 2021, Junior Cycle students’ progress and learning achievements will be recognised in two specific ways designed to meet the current exceptional circumstances presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. For each student, certification will involve two elements.
One of these elements will be a State Certificate of Completion of the Junior Cycle from the Department of Education. This certificate will state that the student has completed the Junior Cycle programme of study. For each student the certificate will include the list of subjects, short courses and/or priority learning units studied by him/her during their Junior Cycle programme.
The other element will be a School Report detailing the learning achievements of the student during their Junior Cycle programme. Students should receive a written report on the broad range of learning that they have achieved in each subject, short course and/or priority learning unit at the end of Junior Cycle. This assessment of their learning will be provided by their teachers. Schools will have autonomy, following consultation with the teachers of third-year students, regarding how this assessment is to be arrived at and the format in which the report is provided.
Further details are available in the Guidelines on Assessment and Reporting on Students’ Learning – Junior Cycle 2021 that have been provided to schools and centres of education and is available on the gov.ie page for the Junior Cycle 2021. These guidelines set out arrangements to support schools and centres for education in their approach to reporting on the learning achievements and progress of students who are completing their Junior Cycle programme of study in 2021.
Schools will shortly be provided with further guidance on continuing to engage this year group in online learning and assessment during the period of school closure and through in-person learning when schools re-open.
