Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein)
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478. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if the leaving certificate applied must be offered to a student in circumstances in which it is deemed more suitable for the student. [11735/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA) programme is one of three Leaving Certificate options made available by my Department for senior cycle students which schools can choose from, based on the education needs and interests of their students. The LCA programme is a two-year Leaving Certificate programme aimed at preparing students for adult and working life. The programme sets out to recognise the talents of all students and to provide opportunities for developing personal responsibility, self-esteem and self-knowledge, and to help students apply what they learn to the real world.

It is the responsibility and choice of each individual school to decide which Leaving Certificate programmes to provide. The LCA programme is not provided in all schools and the decision to offer it is based on the educational needs and interests of their students. It is also for schools to decide on the admittance of a student to the programme in their school. Schools are encouraged to provide maximum access to these Leaving Certificate options and to have clear admission procedures in place regarding how the available places are allocated to students. However, the final decision to provide LCA rests with the board of management.