Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

In putting the question to the Minister, I was not asking him to defend the reform but to help the students and guarantee that they will not lose out on 10% of their marks in English. I hope the Minister can lead, prioritise, instil and inject a real sense of pressing urgency into the ongoing negotiations and that all involved will redouble their efforts to resolve the dispute but the possibility of negotiations failing necessitates having a plan B. The Government has a duty to the students and to the welfare of our young people to show foresight and see the consequences that might flow from its actions. It cannot flail from crisis to crisis without trying to anticipate the events it is putting in motion. The bottom line is that there is an ongoing dispute with the ASTI, which means junior certificate students are going to suffer. The Minister must find a way to level the playing field for these children. Next June, third year students will face their first State examination and no students should have to face that exam, to walk into the examination hall, knowing that before they put pen to paper, they are 10% down on their results through no fault of their own. The Minister for Education should not let that happen.

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