Update for Leaving Cert Students and Parents
Dear Parents and Students,
The Minister announced this afternoon the cancellation of the Leaving Cert for this year. It is to be replaced by a system of what he has called calculated grades. Although, this decision will not please everyone, it least it finally provides clarity and hopefully ends the intolerable pressure a lot of Leaving Cert students were under. We have outlined below how the system will work. However, as you can appreciate, we are awaiting further guidance from the DES into the practicalities and timeframe of the process.
A Calculated Grade is a grade that can be provided to students following the combination of school information about a student’s expected performance in an examination and national data available in relation to the performance of students in examinations over a period of time. A calculated grade results from the combination of two data sets:
A school-based estimation of an overall percentage mark and ranking to be awarded to a student in a particular subject
Data available from the State Examinations Commission – this includes data on past performance of students in each school and nationally. The role of the school is to provide marks and rankings that reflect:
An estimation of the percentage mark in each subject that each candidate is likely to have achieved if they had sat the Leaving Certificate examination in 2020 under normal conditions
A class ranking for each student in each subject – i.e. a list of all the candidates for a particular subject in a class in the order of their estimated level of achievement.
In providing the above estimated marks and rankings, there will be four main school-based steps:
1. The teacher’s estimation of student marks and rankings
2. School alignment of marks for a subject through a subject alignment group comprising teachers who are teaching the subject to Leaving Certificate students this year
3. Oversight of the alignment process by the school principal 4. Transmission of the marks and rankings for national standardisation.
Each of these steps is set out in detail in the booklet ‘A Guide to Calculated Grades for Leaving Certificate Students 2020’ which is available to download here https://www.gov.ie/pdf/?file=https://assets.gov.ie/74043/96076aa3e16240cc93e2a56a1ea94d75.pdf#page=1
The earlier arrangement that full marks would be awarded in respect of the orals and music performance tests was predicated on the written examinations proceeding this summer. As the examinations will not proceed, that arrangement will not apply. In addition to the Calculated Grades process, provision has also been made for a three-stage Appeals Process involving:
A series of checks that data were correctly entered at school level and correctly transferred to the DES
A review that the data were correctly received and processed by the DES
If a candidate remains dissatisfied after notification of outcome of the above two stages, there will be an independent appeal process.
Finally, and in the spirit of fairness to all Leaving Certificate students, the option of sitting the Leaving Certificate examinations when it becomes feasible to hold them remains open to all students.
On line classes for 6th years have now concluded. We, of course, remain committed to their wellbeing and are available to provide advice, guidance or a simple chat. Myself, Ms Sheehan, Ms Flynn (Year Head), Ms Hearn and Ms Power can all be contacted by email or by messaging us on schoolwise. (The emails are available at the end of this letter) We will continue to update you with developments as they arise.
Kind regards,
Colm Ó Corcora Marie Sheehan
Principal Deputy Principal
Mr O Corcora -principal@ccn.ie
Ms Sheehan - msheehan@ccn.ie
Ms O Flynn - loflynn@ccn.ie
Ms Power - npower@ccn.ie
Ms Hearn - mhearn@ccn.ie
