The new name for the Junior Certificate has been revealed. From September pupils will study for the JCSA - Junior Cycle Student Award. Education Minister Ruairi Quinn made the announcement today.

"The new JCSA will put students, rather than exams, at the centre of the three year cycle" he said.

However the Minister also acknowledged that many teachers have "legitimate concerns" about how these new changes will be introduced in schools.

"A new Working Group on Junior Cycle Reform will meet for the first time this Friday, 17th of January. This working group will be a forum where the concerns of the partners can be heard and addressed over the next number of months and years" he commented.

The group is made up of representatives from the teacher unions, the ASTI and TUI, management bodies, parents, the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment and the Department of Education and Skills.

The reform is being phased in over several years from September 2014.

"I am determined that the new JCSA will be introduced at a rate which will allow our schools, students and teachers the time to embed these changes" the Minister added.

The Minister believes there is compelling evidence that the current system is failing some young people "as significant numbers of first years do not make progress in the key building blocks of learning: English and Maths".