From Leaving CertiFiCate to Leaving SChooL a Longitudinal Study ...

Curriculum, Teaching and Learning 23
Too many subjects, too much in the subjects to cover. Stress follows
this and the LC [Leaving Certificate] is made to feel like the end of
the world. (Dawson Street, coed school, mixed intake)
The Leaving Cert exams are more a test of memory than intelligence.
(Fig Lane, coed school, middle-class intake)
This contrasts with the small handful of students who explicitly expressed
the view that the Leaving Certificate is a ‘fair system’:
It is a very fair system which gives everyone an equal chance to do
as well as they can and to achieve their goals. (Park Street, boys’
school, mixed intake)
The reasons given for satisfaction varied somewhat across programmes.
LCA students were more likely to cite doing well academically, work
experience and good relations with peers than those taking other programmes.
LCVP student responses resembled those of LCE students,
though they were more likely to mention that the programme would help
them secure higher points.
Reasons for dissatisfaction with the programme centred on the
amount of pressure involved (which was mentioned by 31 per cent of the
dissatisfied group), the emphasis on the terminal exam (19 per cent) and
the programme being irrelevant or boring (15 per cent).
2.2.2 Views on Leaving Certificate Subjects
Students were also asked about their satisfaction with the subjects they
were taking in sixth year. Because LCA students are less likely to have a
choice of subjects (see Banks et al., 2010), these analyses relate to LCE
and LCVP students only. The majority (80 per cent) of students are satisfied
with the subjects they are taking. Subject satisfaction levels are
broadly similar for male and female students. As with programme satisfaction,
students with higher prior achievements levels are more satisfied
with the subjects they are taking; the vast majority (93 per cent) of those
in the top Junior Certificate quintile (fifth) are satisfied with their subjects
compared with 73 per cent of the lowest quintile. No clear differentiation
is found by social class background in sixth year students’ satisfaction
with the subjects they take. Students who had taken Transition