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After the embarrassing British U-turn on grades, Billy Ryle says the Leaving Cert results need to be published as soon as possible…
What a fine mess they’ve made of it!
It would be laughable if it hadn’t such serious consequences for emotionally drained candidates.
Despite assurances that standardisation, moderation and algorithms would sort out the estimated exam results, the British Government is engaging in a damage limitation exercise days after attempting to defend the indefensible.
Scottish exam results were published on 4th August. About 25% of grades submitted by Scottish teachers were decreased.
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A Level grades were issued to candidates in England, Wales and Northern Ireland on 13th August. About 37.5% were downgraded.
Candidates from schools in the most deprived areas suffered grade reductions far in excess of candidates from upper income families.
This led to allegations that the school not the candidate was assessed and that teachers’ professional judgment was treated with contempt.
After a bitter backlash, the Scottish Government quickly scrapped the moderated grades and accepted the grades submitted by teachers.
As a result of a nation-wide protest by angry students, education authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland backed down on Monday and in an embarrassing U-turn they replaced the moderated grades with the estimated grades submitted by teachers.
Candidates are angry, confused and bamboozled by the flip flopping in Great Britain, which may have cost many of them places at University.
Irish Leaving Cert results won’t be available until the 7th September, – five weeks later than the Scottish results and four weeks later than British A Level results – which is far too late for candidates, many of whom have serious decisions to make.
If the Irish results are ‘standardised’ like the British ones, there’ll be all hell to pay.
The State Examinations Commission (SEC), the second level exams authority, washed its hands of the calculated grades process from the very start on legal grounds, so the question needs to be asked and answered, ‘who is overseeing the Irish Leaving Cert calculated grades process?’
What the Irish Department of Education and Skills is playing-down and what candidates may not be aware of is that there is no facility this year to appeal the calculated grade awarded, only the paper trail leading to the grade awarded.
This is a fundamental denial of a candidate’s civil right to due process and a major departure from long established practice in the state exams.
Any attempt by the Department of Education and Skills to reduce the mark so that it complies with the ‘normal curve’ in abnormal times should take into consideration that the candidate is not an element of raw manipulative data but a young person with feelings, emotions, anxieties and dreams.
A very simple example helps to make my point. A H4 Grade, 60% but less than 70%, in Higher Level Irish is a minimum entry requirement for Primary Teaching. The school submits a mark of 61%, which fulfils the entry requirement.
If, after a process of statistical standardisation based on previous years’ results, the mark is reduced by the Department of Education and Skills to 59%, a H5 Grade, the candidate’s ambition to become a Primary Teacher is cruelly dashed with no right to appeal the grade.
Ireland must learn from the British mistakes. Forget about pulverising marks into conformity with the normal curve in an abnormal year.
Have confidence in the teachers’ calculations. Allow a grade appeal process and publish the Leaving Cert results ASAP, so that young people don’t miss out on college places.
• England, Scotland, Wales & Northern Ireland have scrapped the moderated grades and accepted the grades submitted by teachers
• Leaving Cert results won’t be available until the 7th Sept, – five weeks later than the Scottish results and four weeks later than British A Level results
• 7th Sept is far too late for candidates, many of whom have serious decisions to make
• If the Irish results are ‘standardised’ like the British, there’ll be all hell to pay
• There’s no facility to appeal the calculated grade, only the paper trail leading to the grade awarded
• Allow a grade appeal process
• Ireland must learn from the British mistakes
• Forget about ‘standardising’ marks in an abnormal year
• Have confidence in the teachers’ calculations
• Publish the Leaving Cert results ASAP, so that young people don’t miss out on college places
• Billy Ryle is a Career Guidance Counsellor and Educational Commentator
