Teachers oppose assessing own junior pupils
September 27, 2011
TEACHER group leaders have said they oppose members marking their own students as part of the new Junior Certificate testing -even though hundreds are already doing so.
The Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) said it favours reforms of the exam system but the introduction of assessment of students by their own teachers is not acceptable. As part of an overhaul of the three-year junior cycle, the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) has proposed that 40% of marks in all subjects would be based on portfolios of students learning. But the projects and other studies that make up those portfolios would be marked within each school, subject to samples being checked by the State Examinations Commission to ensure fairness and the maintenance of standards. The Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) says teachers should be paid for any assessment of students. But ASTI objected on the bass that any move that places teachers in the role of judge rather than advocate of students will distort the professional relationship between them, and with parents. General secretary Pat King said the question of payment has never arisen for his members. “It’s a matter of the fairness and objectivity of the exam system,” he said. “All the teachers we consult don’t want to change that relationship with their students and they never mention money.”
The Irish Examiner reported this month that students at 94 of the 730 second-level schools had marks in the optional Junior Cert Irish submitted by their schools for this year’s results. The SEC does not pay external examiners to visit schools for Junior Cert oral tests but the number of schools doing the Irish oral exam has risen from fewer than 12 since plans were announced in 2007 to double the marks awarded for the exam to 40%. The use of local arrangements, where teachers would test students from neighbouring schools in oral Irish, is being discussed by unions, school management groups and the SEC. It is believed that an agreement on this might open the door for compromise on the wider issue and addresses teacher concerns about assessing their own pupils without major costs arising. The ASTI also said Education Minister Ruairi Quinn needs to ringfence funding for teacher development and technology investment if he approves the junior cycle reforms. They are concerned, too, at plans to limit pupils starting second level from next year to eight exam subjects, as there is uncertainty over who will decide which subjects they take, and when the decision will be made. The Department of Education said last night that Mr Quinn has yet to consider the NCCA proposals. They include plans to introduce short courses in areas such as active citizenship, participation in school performances and practical skills such as web design, personal finance and debating. The grading system would be replaced by awards of distinction, merit or pass, written exams would be reduced to two hours or less and higher and ordinary level would be replaced by a common qualification for all subjects except English, Irish and maths. A second new qualification is proposed for students with special educational needs.
Irish Examiner – Niall Murray
