Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 4 July 2018
116. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Skills the action being taken to avoid non-teachers being hired to correct State examinations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29338/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe State Examinations Commission is statutorily responsible for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations.
I have been advised by the Commission, which is the independent body in place to operate and deliver the Junior and Leaving Certificate examinations, that it has an absolute responsibility to examination candidates to ensure that their work is marked to the highest standards of quality and integrity.
The SEC appoints approximately 3,600 examiners each year to mark the Leaving and Junior Certificate written examinations. The first and most essential requirement for examiners is subject competence. The SEC has a strict policy when it comes to the recruitment of examiners which requires that personnel appointed to mark the state examinations are appropriately qualified. This is non-negotiable.
When appointing examiners, the Commission advises that:
- Examiners appointed by it are selected on the basis of their academic qualifications, their teaching experience and their examining experience.
- All examiners are appropriately qualified for the work.
- Most of them are experienced serving and retired teachers.
- A large number of experienced examiners are reappointed each year
- When making new appointments, priority is given to teachers
- All appointments are overseen by the Chief Examiner
The procedures and criteria used for the appointment of examiners in 2018 are the same as in previous years. This year, as in every year, the SEC has prioritised qualified teachers to correct the exams but every year there are a small portion of examiners who are qualified in the subject area they are correcting but who are not qualified teachers. In 2017, a very small proportion (20 or 1.9% of all Junior Cycle examiners and 2 or 0.1% of all Leaving Certificate Examiners) held a qualification in the relevant subject but did not have a teaching qualification. The 2018 figures are still being finalised but the SEC do not have any reason to believe that the figures are substantially much different on previous years. However, it is important to emphasise that all examiners go through rigorous training and instruction and their work is monitored by an experienced and senior member of the examining team who samples their work on an ongoing basis throughout the marking process. The Commission takes corrective action in any case where an examiner’s work falls below the required standard. These measures are designed to ensure the fair, accurate and consistent marking of every candidate’s work, as is the case every year.
On the broader issue of teacher supply, which also impacts of the availability of teachers to mark the State examinations, I announced a series of actions to address these issues, including:
- Lifting the restrictions for those teachers currently on career break, in order to deal with short term substitution problems;
- Emphasising to schools that under the career break scheme, a career break can only be granted where the school will be in a position to fill the vacancy;
- Universities have increased the capacity on undergraduate initial teacher education programmes by an estimated 280 places for September 2018;
- At postgraduate level, the Universities have increased the capacity on PME programmes by more than 100 places in the priority areas of STEM, Irish and foreign languages.
I have also established a Teacher Supply Steering Group chaired by the Secretary General of my Department which includes the HEA, Teaching Council, nominees of the higher education sector and the school management bodies. The Steering Group will lead on the identification of the issues, the development of a programme of actions on teacher supply and oversee its implementation.
