Minister Quinn backs National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) proposals for junior cycle reform

The Minister for Education and Skills, Ruairí Quinn T.D., today officially launched proposals which will see radical changes in the way Junior Cycle students are taught and assessed in second level schools.

The NCCA proposals will address the problems of rote learning and curriculum overload while providing for greater creativity and innovation.

They are designed to strengthen key skills and provide for more relevant and flexible forms of assessment.

The Minister has asked his officials to begin discussions with the partners in education on implementing the proposals.

“I will also put the necessary arrangements in place to begin the assessment and consideration of the resource implications of the proposals,” he told an NCCA board meeting.

Minister Quinn welcomed the recommended limit on the number of subjects to be taken for qualification purposes, and the reduction in the content of syllabuses to make space for active learning and the embedding of key skills.

However, he indicated that these issues would have to be explored further in discussions on implementation, particularly in terms of what the changes would mean for timetabling and delivery in schools.

Last month he had agreed that the cap, limiting qualifications to a maximum of 8 subjects or equivalent, would not come into effect on a mandatory basis until the entrants beginning second level in 2014 were sitting their first examination in 2017.

However, he encouraged schools and students to move in this direction as soon as possible. The Minister stressed the importance of ensuring that ICT is strengthened across all subjects and short courses, and indicated reform in assessment was essential to provide real change in teaching and learning, and in the student experience. 

He welcomed the proposal for a Level 2 award for those students with special needs for whom the junior certificate was unsuitable.  He sought the co-operation of teachers and schools in implementing the proposed changes, which will begin on a phased basis in 2014 for first examination in 2017.

Speaking after the meeting, the chairperson of the Council, Prof. Tom Collins said that the launch of the proposals with the support of the Minister represented a historic achievement for the NCCA.

I was surprised to learn, that this was a third attempt at reforming this phase of education in the relatively recent era. It is evident that this time around, the alignment of the research findings, Ireland’s PISA performance, concerns being expressed at school level about the quality of student engagement, developments in technology, the commitment of the Minister, and the insights and views of students themselves pointed us firmly towards change. 

He also noted that the current social and economic crisis played a part in shaping the proposals and in giving an impetus to finding new solutions to old problems. He noted the shift in emphasis from describing what subjects are taught, to a focus on what students should learn and welcomed the 24 Statements of Learning for all students as a means to ensure equality between schools and readiness for senior cycle. He was particularly pleased, he said, to see the new qualification for students with special needs. He also paid tribute to the Council members for their engagement with the research findings and for the time they gave to developing and finalising the proposals.

Noting that the hard work of implementation was now underway, Dr. Anne Looney, Chief Executive of the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, emphasised the scale of the challenge involved.

2014 may sound like a long time away, but it means that schools need to begin planning early in 2012. It means that children now in fourth class in primary school, who will leave post-primary school in 2020, will be the first to access the new qualification. Being ready is a big ask for a system more used to a slower pace of change, and to change of a modest scale. Supporting schools and supporting teachers who will lead the change will be critical to getting these proposals from the paper and from the screen into the learning and lives of students. 

Copies of the proposals are on their way to post-primary schools, but the material is all available on www.ncca.ie/juniorcycle. Anyone with an interest in the 2020 generation and their education and aspirations should take a look, suggested Dr. Looney.