The Government’s failure to tackle grade inflation has left us in a “ridiculous situation” where students who get maximum points are not getting their preferred college courses, Shane Coleman has warned.
As almost 62,000 Leaving Certs students prepare for their results this morning, it has emerged that this year’s grades have once again been adjusted upwards.
Figures show that around 290,000 of the 410,000 exam grades have been adjusted upwards following their initial marking.
The State Examination Commission boosted the grades by nearly 8% through post-marking adjustment after Education Minister Norma Foley directed the body to ensure that this year’s results were no lower than last year's.
On Newstalk Breakfast this morning, presenter Shane Coleman said the move has called the whole system into question.
“The problem is, you’re going to have kids who get 625 points and they will not get their first-choice course,” he said. “That is a ridiculous situation.”
“That calls into question the integrity of the system. We also know third-level heads are quite concerned about grade inflation.
“They fear it is one of the factors behind the high dropout rates in colleges at the moment.”
Leaving Cert
He said the UK already “bit this bullet” and has now started to move away from pandemic-era grade inflation.
“We have opted not to tackle this issue,” he said.
“I can tell you 100%, next year’s class did not sit the Junior Cert either and there will be an election a few months after it, it will not happen next year. I can absolutely guarantee that.”
Fairness
Also on the show, Education Minister Norma Foley said the grades were boosted once again in response to the “very unique” circumstances the Class of 2023 has faced.
“They did not have the privilege, nor perhaps more importantly, the experience of sitting any State exams,” she said. “They did not sit a junior cycle exam.
“They also had to contend or grapple if you like with an enormous degree of remote teaching and learning – which they did.
“For these reasons and others, they are quite a unique cohort of students and I did give the commitment that the grade profile achieved last year and the previous year would be a similar grade profile achieved this year and we did deliver on that.”
"Unique circumstances"
She said this year’s class did not get all the accommodations given to last year's – noting that they had a greater choice of questions on the paper but did not have less questions to answer.
The Minister said a decision on whether to boost next year’s results will be taken based on the “unique circumstances” pertaining to the Class of 2024.
“As a minister, my focus has been on fairness for the students,” she said.
“That we would always take a student-centred approach and we will do what is in the best interests of students at a given time and their unique circumstances at a given time will be taken into consideration.
“So next year’s students will not be exactly the same as this year’s cohort of students and therefore the measures that need to be taken in relation to them will be taken at an opportune time.”
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