Peter Cleere (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

792. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if students sitting their Leaving Certificate in 2025 will be at a disadvantage as grades are to be adjusted back to pre-pandemic level; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18851/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Following the implementation of calculated grades in 2020 and the dual approach of examinations and accredited grades in 2021, two types of intervention have been implemented in recent years: adjustments to examination and assessments arrangements, and a post-marking adjustment to outcomes. This post-marking adjustment has ensured that results in the aggregate have remained the same on average since 2021.

As is widely recognised, it is appropriate to return over time to normal arrangements for Leaving Certificate outcomes. On 17 April 2024, the then-Minister announced that the return to normal Leaving Certificate outcomes would begin in 2025 and that it would be a gradual reduction in line with the commitment that there would be no “cliff-edge” in overall results on the aggregate.

I am very conscious of the stress of the exam period on students and do not want to add to this stress. While grade inflation must be reduced, it must be done in a way that is as fair as possible.

For 2025, therefore, the State Examinations Commission (SEC) will again apply a post-marking adjustment once marking is complete. This adjustment will bring results in the aggregate up to a point broadly midway between 2020 and 2021 levels.

This initial reduction is being done at a slower and more gradual pace than grade inflation occurred during the pandemic. Leaving Certificate grades rose by 4.4% in 2020, and in 2021 they rose by an additional 2.6%, bringing the overall increase to approximately 7 percentage points over 2019 levels. Results in the aggregate in 2025 are expected to be above 2019 levels by at least 5.5 percentage points on average.

This very gradual pace aims to minimise the impact on students as far as possible.

In addition, the examinations and assessment adjustments that have applied in recent years continue to apply for students in 2025. These assist students by leaving intact the familiar overall structure of the examinations, while incorporating additional choice for students in the examinations. In some cases, the adjustment measures provide more time for tuition by, for example, reducing preparatory work for practical examinations.

Access to higher education is a matter for the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (DFHERIS). My Department is working closely with DFHERIS, which has emphasised it is strongly committed to supporting students as evidenced in the creation of additional places in a number of high-demand courses over the past number of years. These additional places have been created in medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and therapy disciplines among others. Further additionality is in place for 2025, including a new programme in dentistry.

My Department has been advised that the proportion of higher education entrants who completed their Leaving Certificate the previous year is typically around 13% and that there are no indications at this time that the proportion of students applying with pre-2025 Leaving Certificate results varies significantly this year compared to previous years.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

793. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if an MSc in nursing education obtained from UCD can be assessed for the purpose of removing the teacher education qualification condition currently attached to a route 3 further education registration (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18854/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Under the Teaching Council Acts 2001-2015 the Teaching Council is the body with the statutory authority and responsibility for the regulation of the teaching profession in Ireland including the registration of teachers in the state.

It is a function of the Council under the Teaching Council Acts (s7(2)) to act as the competent authority for recognition of qualifications obtained by a person who has applied under this Act for registration as a teacher.

The Teaching Council have advised that they register teachers under the Teaching Council Act 2001-2015 and in line with the . As set out in the Schedule of the Regulations, the Council registers teachers under five routes of registration: Route 1 - Primary, Route 2 - Post-primary, Route 3 - Further Education, Route 4 - Other and Route 5 - Student Teacher. In order to be entered on the Register of Teachers, and depending on the route of registration, all registrants are required to hold, or attain within 3 years, an accredited initial teacher education qualification.

In accordance with Route Three of the Registration Regulations, 2016, applicants for registration for the further education sector, must attain a Council approved further education teacher education qualification. The minimum registration requirements for Route 3 – Further Education as set down in the schedule are as follows:

An undergraduate degree at Level 8 or higher on the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ) which has a ECTS credit weighting of at least 180 credits,

or

An undergraduate degree at Level 7 on the NFQ which has a ECTS credit weighting of at least 180 credits AND either

1. An appropriate additional qualification, or
2. A minimum of three years’ experience in a workplace or instructional setting which is relevant to the qualification(s)

A Teaching Council accredited Further Education teacher education qualification (TEQ).

Applicants who meet the degree qualification requirements set out above and who have not completed an accredited TEQ will be eligible for conditional registration for a period of three years in which time this requirement must be completed. If applicants have not addressed this condition of TEQ within the three years, they can apply for an extension of time to meet the condition. Details on how to apply for an extension are available on our website.

The list of accredited Further Education TEQs are listed on the Teaching Council’s website.

The Teaching Council have published . These are used by the Council when assessing and accrediting further education teacher education programmes being offered by Higher Education Institutes (HEIs). HEIs who meet these standards can contact the Council in respect of the accreditation process.

There is no mechanism whereby what is being sought can be facilitated, as the transparent and equal application of published regulations and procedures in the state are important legal principles.