A chara, – The new Junior Cycle Irish exam on Wednesday left me feeling shame, anger and sadness. It is the first exam since the introduction of a new Irish curriculum. This new curriculum denies me the ability to teach spoken Irish. There is no oral exam. Instead I am expected to teach one novel, one drama, three short stories and five poems in two years.
Secondary-school teachers of Irish had no role in the design of the new syllabus or exam. We have been and continue to be ignored by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment who refuse to engage with us beyond meaningless surveys. What is to be done for the students who hate the new course that is almost entirely based on literature? What is to be done for us, the practitioners in the classroom who are being ignored? Never has the future of the subject been more in jeopardy. I beg the Minister for Education to intervene.
Is mise, le meas,
MÍCHEÁL CLANCY,
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Leitir Ceanainn, Dún na nGall.
Sir, – Your critique of the Junior Cycle history examination, sat for the first time on Thursday, began: “Teachers have heavily criticised a new Junior Cycle common-level history paper which offered students no choices and did not give any indication as to how many marks would be allocated to each question.”
Nobody should have been surprised. The lack of choice and of any specific mark allocation are entirely consistent across all subjects in this new Junior Cycle. This was to be expected and therefore the history exam could have been no different. It was clear from the sample papers from the State Examinations Commission.
As the questions were consistent with the syllabus and set out to test a wide range of learning objectives amenable to written assessment, it makes me wonder what sort of exam the critics had been hoping for. Something completely different? – Yours, etc,
PÁDRAIC HARVEY,
An Cheathrú Rua,
Co na Gaillimhe.