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

She does not trust their word. The very people who she entrusts to educate our students are advising her, based on their educational expertise, that it is not in the best interest of students or educational outcomes to introduce a system whereby teachers assess their own students. This opinion is based on the expertise they have gained from doing their jobs over many years. The Minister suggests that the aim of these reforms is to move to a model of continuous assessment because, as she has indicated in replies to parliamentary questions, all of the research indicates that continuous assessment is preferable to terminal exams. If she truly believed that, she would embrace what the teachers are saying. They have repeatedly indicated their willingness to explore models of continuous assessment. They will buy into such a system but they will not accept a system of continuous assessment which requires them to be judge and jury of their own students. If the research indicates that educational outcomes can be improved by a system of continuous assessment, why not embrace that? Why is the Minister determined to introduce a system that places the onus on teachers to correct their own students' work?

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