Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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67. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills when the results for Leaving Cert 2023 will be issued; what the difficulty is with giving students a date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22877/23]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Whilst the State Examinations Commission (SEC) is responsible for the operation, delivery and development of the State examinations, I am very much aware of the importance for students, parents and education stakeholders of ensuring that the results for Leaving Certificate 2023 are delivered in as timely a manner as possible.

While the SEC is not yet in a position to confirm the date for the Leaving Certificate 2023 results, my strong preference is to see results for Leaving Certificate 2023 issue within the month of August.

Last year was the first time since 2019 that written State examinations were undertaken by all students. The date for issue of results was influenced by a number of factors. These included a challenge in recruiting sufficient examiners, the welcome provision of a set of deferred examinations at Leaving Certificate for candidates who experienced illness or bereavement, and the implementation of a post-marking adjustment to give effect to the commitment that results in 2022 would be no lower in the aggregate than in the previous year.

All of these factors remain part of the planning for the 2023 examinations.

For 2023, in relation to the recruitment of examiners, the SEC has been undertaking a review of this issue with all of the post-primary stakeholders. The objective is to substantially increase the number of teachers involved. The SEC’s recruitment campaign for written examiners is ongoing and a new recruitment hub has been launched at secexaminer.ie. In recent years there have been increases in the rates paid to examiners and the SEC have again received additional funding for these rates for 2023.

A set of deferred Leaving Certificate examinations will be provided again this year for candidates who experience illness or bereavement. For this year, the SEC issued Circular S34/22 to schools on the 27th April setting out the criteria for accessing the deferred examinations. A key change for 2023 is that the criteria set out in the circular now include provision for a situation where a candidate experiences an extreme medical emergency after they have commenced the examination. This follows a review by the SEC of the operation of the deferred exams in 2022.

I have also previously confirmed that there would be no “cliff edge” for this year’s students in relation to grades. It is expected that this will require a post-marking adjustment, and this is also part of the planning ongoing for the 2023 examinations.

Every effort will be made to ensure that the results of the examinations are available in time to meet the needs of candidates and end users, notwithstanding the challenges and student-centred requirements that must be managed. Sufficient time must also be allowed for the range of checks and quality assurance procedures which are required in the resulting process. It is of vital importance for students, and indeed for other stakeholders, that the procedures are given sufficient time to execute to the highest standards.