Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Is the Minister saying that despite all of the engagement with the unions and their participation in the working groups, they have not yet given him a firm indication of what resources are needed to roll out the junior cycle reform? There has been a great deal of discussion of self-assessment, which is where the nub of the problem seems to be. Having spoken to teachers, it does not appear that the issue is one of self-assessment per se. Most teachers assess their students by way of Christmas and Easter exams and ongoing assessments throughout the year. The crux of the issues appears to be at the State examination level. There must be an independent analysis or verification of the assessment. That is where the focus needs to be. I wonder how we will get there. I have a daughter who is entering post-primary education this year. She will be one of the first students to do the new cycle. Speaking to parents at the school gate, I see that they do not know what is happening. They do not know what changes will be made and how it will affect their children who are entering first year this year. We need to rectify that as we are running out of time very quickly.

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