Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As Minister for Education and Skills, I am committed to ensuring the State examinations of 2021 operate as normally as possible, subject to the prevailing public health advice at that time. This commitment is shared by the State Examinations Commission, SEC, which has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations. It continues to be a priority for the Government to keep our schools open now that they have been reopened. The Department of Education and Skills has put in place a comprehensive range of measures to support schools in this effort.

The Department has ongoing engagement with the public health authorities so that schools can remain open safely and is working with the partners in education to ensure this is a shared objective. I am very pleased to confirm that, from the very beginning, it has been a shared objective. In addition, the Department has published a range of documentation and support material as part of the Roadmap for the Full Return to School for the 2020 to 2021 academic year. This includes the document entitled, Assessment Arrangements for Junior Cycle and Leaving Certificate Examinations 2021, which sets out the assessment changes for the 2021 State examinations. These arrangements take account of the disrupted learning experienced by students during this past academic year 2019 to 2020 and makes accommodation should there be any gaps for the 2020 to 2021 school year, as a contingency measure. The adjustments play to students' strengths by leaving intact the familiar overall structure of the examinations, while incorporating additional choice. There will be no change to the length of the written examinations. Project briefs for relevant subjects will issue earlier than usual and practical coursework will be submitted two weeks earlier than normal as a contingency measure. Teachers are being encouraged to plan and undertake these projects as early as possible in the programme of study.

These changes to the leaving certificate assessment arrangements for 2021 will provide reassurance to students, their parents and guardians and teachers and schools. As I said, it is the intention that provision is made through the assessment of the curriculum going forward.

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