Quinn eyes 2013 date for revised Junior Cert
“The first-year class of 2013 could be the first group of students to undertake a completely revised Junior Certificate. Education Minister Ruairi Quinn is hopeful that the changes being finalised by...
View ArticleChanges in school exams
“Sir, – Seán Flynn (Front page, August 26th) draws attention to proposals being prepared for the Minister for Education by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment. The focus of the article –...
View ArticleProgramme 105, Anne Looney – NCCA, pt 2
“This week we bring you the second part of an interview conducted recently with Dr Anne Looney of the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment. In the programme Anne Looney shares her views on...
View ArticleParents and public must accept ‘challenging’ exams
“Parents and the public, generally, must accept the Leaving Certificate has to challenge students rather than react angrily to difficult exam papers, says the head of the agency that will lead its...
View ArticleJunior Cert 8-subject limit put off for 2 years
“The introduction of an eight-subject limit to the Junior Certificate is to be put back for two years following concerns by teachers and parents, Education Minister Ruairi Quinn told second-level...
View ArticleNumber of Junior Certificate subjects to be limited to eight from 2014
“A proposal to limit the number of Junior Certificate subjects students sit exams in to eight will be put in place in 2014, Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn has said. Mr Quinn announced yesterday...
View ArticleProgramme 114, PISA pt 3, & Junior Cert Reform
“Guests on the programme this week included Minister for Education and Skills, Ruairí Quinn, and CEO of the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, Dr Anne Looney. They were interviewed at the...
View ArticleRote learning for the Leaving
“Sir, – The education specialists who composed a recent Higher Education Authority and National Council for Curriculum and Assessment report say: ‘The notion that Leaving Certificate questions are...
View ArticleUnion rebuffs Quinn’s Junior Cert reform plans
“Ambitious plans by Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn for Junior Cert reform have suffered a setback – after the main second-level teacher union hardened its opposition to proposed changes …” (more)...
View ArticleRemoving history and geography
“Sir, – It appears the Minister for Education has decided to rubber-stamp the NCCA’s proposal to remove history and geography from the core curriculum of the Junior Cycle …” (more) [Peter Lydon, Irish...
View ArticleASTI response to Junior Cycle proposals
“On 4th October 2012, Minister for Education and Skills Ruairi Quinn published a document called ‘A Framework for Junior Cycle’. The curricular and assessment changes proposed by the Minister have very...
View ArticleTeacher’s pet
“Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn has a spring in his step around the Department of Education these days, as you might expect, after the very positive response to those radical Junior Cert reforms...
View ArticleChanging the Junior Cert
“Sir, – I wish to strongly refute the assertion that the Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) had signed off on the Minister for Education’s proposed radical changes to the Junior Cycle (Teacher’s Pet,...
View ArticleStudy: Project Maths syllabus doing well, but could do better
“The Project Maths syllabus designed to improve how the subject is taught at second level is moving in the right direction but there are still challenges, research on its implementation has found …”...
View ArticleTeachers make CAO race even harder for students
“Teachers are contributing to the CAO points race in the way they mark their students in school exams, government education advisers believe. The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment is...
View ArticleCouncil to consider Project Maths syllabus concerns
“The body which designed the Project Maths syllabus says it will take on board the concerns of teachers about its length and suitability. In a report to the National Council for Curriculum and...
View ArticleTeachers fear changes to the Junior Certificate will undermine standards
“Secondary school teachers fear planned changes to the Junior Certificate could damage educational standards and break down trust between students and parents …” (more) [Niall Murray, Irish Examiner,...
View ArticleInternational evidence shows dialogue with teachers crucial to education reform
“Andreas Schleicher has spent years examining the relationship between education reform and outcomes across a range of countries. The OECD’s special adviser on education policy has come to the...
View ArticleCAO shake-up to take heat out of points race
“University presidents are preparing to introduce major changes to the CAO college-entry process from 2015 …” (more) [Independent, 12 March]
View ArticleWhy Maths Matters
“On Friday 8th of March I attended the ‘Why Maths Matters’ conference in University of Limerick. The day was about ‘taking stock, examining practice and developing policy’ …” (more) [Pam O'Brien's...
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