Colette Kelleher (Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is very encouraging to have the voice of the student. We also have the voice of the student in this petition and we will get back to that.

Would the State Examinations Commission, SEC, be prepared to consider its feedback processes in light of this petition? I am concerned because 55,000 people sat the junior cycle examination. There were no complaints, the line was not hopping but the SEC heard from the media, the teaching bodies and the professional associations. Could it review its feedback process on the students' experience and build that into its processes?

The Department and the SEC are ambivalent about the use of mocks, particularly in respect of the new junior cycle. Given that and the difficulties of quality control, of the SEC getting more directly involved and regulation, is there an opportunity for the Department to review their use by schools and to consider issuing guidelines? The Department says it has not endorsed their use or considered them to be an appropriate and effective use of school time, which is a strong statement, yet they happen all over the country and caused concern to this individual. Given the ambivalence, would the SEC consider abandoning the practice?