Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 14 May 2024
301. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Education to provide an update on the progress in respect of the Leaving Certificate reform; when she expects that work to be completed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21455/24]
View answerSenior Cycle Redevelopment is an ambitious programme of work designed to deliver a reimagined Senior Cycle of education that will significantly enrich the student experience. The redevelopment of Senior Cycle will maintain the high-quality education system for which Ireland is well known and reduce the focus on terminal written examinations.
Significant progress has been made on the Senior Cycle Redevelopment programme since my announcement in March 2022 where I set out a clear vision for the redevelopment of all Senior Cycle programmes, including the Leaving Certificate Established (LCE), and also the Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA), Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP) and Transition Year (TY) programmes.
The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) has recently published the schedule of revision for all Leaving Certificate subjects and modules in five annual tranches from 2025 to 2029.
Draft specifications for the first Tranche of Leaving Certificate subjects to be revised and introduced have been published and public consultations have been held on the same. The NCCA is currently working to finalise all specifications in this Tranche so that teacher professional learning can be delivered in the 2024/2025 school year which is the year ahead of the revised subjects being taught in schools.
The first tranche also includes two new Leaving Certificate subjects in Drama, Film and Theatre Studies and Climate Action and Sustainable Development. These subjects are currently being developed and will be introduced on a phased basis from the 2025/2026 school year. An application process for schools to participate in phase one has recently closed. Schools will be informed of the outcome of their application by the end of the current school year.
Subject Development Groups (SDGs) for the development of revised curricula for subjects in Tranche 2, which will be introduced in schools in 2026, have been convened and held their first meetings on 27 February 2024. The NCCA is currently preparing to convene SDGs for subjects in Tranche 3.
Under Senior Cycle Redevelopment we are changing how our students are assessed, integrating assessment more deeply into their teaching and learning experience and spreading the assessment load. Each new and revised Leaving Certificate subject will incorporate additional assessment components (AAC) worth at least 40% of available marks. These AACs will be externally assessed by the State Examinations Commission.
The revised assessment arrangements will ensure teaching and learning are not focused on a narrow set of competencies associated with written examinations. It also ensures students are rewarded for developing and demonstrating different skills, whilst also addressing the stress that many students experience arising from terminal examinations.
Since September 2022, LCA students have had improved access to Leaving Certificate Established LCE Mathematics and Modern Foreign Languages, broadening the options for LCA students in their future paths beyond Senior Cycle.
Students following the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme are now able to access LVCP link modules without meeting subject specific criteria or the modern European language requirements.
The NCCA has drafted an updated Transition Year Programme Statement, which has recently been submitted to me for consideration. I have also asked my officials to explore how we can make Transition Year available to all students in every school who wishes to participate.
My Department is also exploring ways to support schools to further open opportunities for their students to experience “taster” modules where they have opportunities to experience aspects of apprenticeship programmes and the opportunities offered by further education and training institutions. In this way, students will gain greater exposure to the diverse and multiple pathways which are available to them following their Senior Cycle studies.
A new and much needed dimension to Senior Cycle that will build on the Junior Cycle equivalent provision, will be introduced when a new Programme Statement for Senior Cycle Level 1 and Level 2 Learning Programmes (L1/L2LPs) will be introduced. The introduction of Senior Cycle L1/L2LPs will provide enhanced options so that students can follow the pathways that are most appropriate to their needs.
This progress across the entire breadth of our Senior Cycle programmes means that we are now delivering on the ambition of a more inclusive Senior Cycle that recognises the many talents of our students, and ensures they have the kind of 21st Century education needed to bring those talents to bear as they make their way in the world of work and beyond.
