Ms Andrea Feeney:

There are a few points to pick up on from Senator Flynn’s questions. We dealt with one of them earlier in the engagement with Deputy O’Callaghan on rote learning. We talked about special educational needs in the context of level 1 and level 2 learning programmes, but in the context of the examinations we provide the reasonable accommodations at certificate examinations scheme, RACE. We provide that in respect of students who have special educational needs that impact on their ability to communicate what they know and can do to an examiner. Access arrangements are put in place for these students to allow them to sit the examinations. The number of students we accommodate under the scheme each year is significant. Some 17%, or more than 20,000, students taking examinations will access some form of reasonable accommodation. The range of accommodations we provide are as complex and as extensive as the range of student needs we are trying to accommodate. It is significant in terms of the support arrangements provided in order that students can access the examinations if they have some form of special need, whether it be physical or a form of a learning difficulty.

We spoke briefly about the pathways with respect to the leaving certificate applied. One of the challenges within the system is that the leaving certificate applied is not valued. It is not appreciated. The leaving certificate applied is a wonderful programme. We spoke about having a very high rate of retention. Much of that is down to the leaving certificate applied. Students who might have left school after the junior cycle in the past will go on and complete their leaving certificate applied and their qualification is as valued as the leaving certificate. Unfortunately, the leaving certificate applied is not valued in the context of progression and students have more limited opportunities. They can use it for further education but cannot use it to go to higher education directly. They can pursue post-leaving courses but they cannot go directly to higher education. There is a challenge in having that valued. The debate and discourse on the senior cycle has been extremely helpful in shining a light on the leaving certificate applied programme and what it is doing for a cohort of young people who would have possibly left school without this final qualification were it not for that programme. We would love there to be more recognition for that programme, the wonderful work leaving certificate applied co-ordinators in schools do and the wonderful engagement by students in that programme, which they bring throughout their two years in the senior cycle programme. Those are the two issues I wanted to raise in addressing Senator Flynn’s questions.