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

Curriculum, Teaching and Learning 63
They just see us more as people now, they’re not always kind of giving
out to us.
… Like I don’t know maybe it’s just me but like I can walk into
class like half an hour late and no one really cares. I’ll just be like oh
sorry I was at a meeting and that will be like ok.
… Whereas if you did that in first year you’d be dead. (Fig Lane,
coed school, middle-class intake)
They are grand this year they treat us older as well like. You know
they don’t give out to us as much you know. If we don’t have the
work done they respect that we don’t have the work done like. If we
have a reason like, you know.
… Yeah, they are much more understanding this year. (Argyle
Street, coed school, mixed intake)
Many students appeared to enjoy the responsibility given to them by their
teachers and felt their teachers were more trusting of them (characterised
as ‘mutual respect’ by one group of girls in Belmore Street school):
Most of them like, they say to you like it’s your choice if you learn.
But like they do like treat you like as an adult like instead of the way
they treat like the first and third years. (Belmore Street, girls’ school,
mixed intake)
Others felt that their teachers took account of the stress involved in preparing
for the Leaving Certificate exam and treated them accordingly:
They treat you more like an adult, they wouldn’t treat you like a
child, because they know you’re probably under enough stress as it is
but like you get on well with them, decent enough like. (Park Street,
boys’ school, mixed intake)
Students appreciated the fact that during sixth year the teachers put the
onus on them to do homework or study. Some students recognised that this
approach was preparing them for how post-school education would be:
They’re not pushing you to study as such for like the Leaving Cert
because they’re kind of saying you should be doing it under your
own steam at this stage because next year like in college you won’t