A major reform to the Junior Certificate exams will see the pass rate dramatically reduced in final written exams from next year onwards.
According to a report in this morning’s Irish Times, students undertaking exams as part of the new Junior Cycle programme next year will achieve a pass upon hitting 20%. The traditional ‘A, B, C’ marking scheme is also set to be replaced by descriptive terms.
The reforms were unveiled yesterday by the Department of Education, which wants to move away from the traditional exam strategies and ‘rote-learning’ technique.
While lowering the pass-fail grade percentage, the Department also revealed the new exam marking structure as follows:
90-100% – Distinction
75-90% – Higher merit
55-75% – Merit
40-55% – Achieved
20-40% – Partially achieved
20% and under – not graded
The new scheme will be introduced next year, with the final English exam paper. According to a circular issued by the Department, the reforms will be gradually applied to other subjects over the following years.
Do you have a student facing into the Junior Certificate in the coming years, who will be affected by the changes? Do you think this is a positive step forward?
