Towards a Better Future

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Chapter Three: Curriculum professional work. It should be sufficiently flexible to allow for the development of alternative programmes … (and) the scope and range of skills and qualities assessed should be broadened considerably’. The report added: ‘If one is to provide an assessment of a comprehensive range of content and skills, if one is to achieve congruence between course objectives and examination procedures, and if the increased autonomy of schools and teachers is to be promoted, then it seems inevitable that at least part of the examination procedure will be school-based’. It pointed out that change from external to internal assessment, especially at the end of the compulsory school period, had taken place in many countries, including Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Sweden and New Zealand and it was time for Ireland to follow suit (CEB, 1984). Following a period of public consultation, and taking account of the views submitted, a framework for curriculum and assessment - In Our Schools - was issued by the CEB in March 1986. The influence of some of the principles underpinning the 1971 primary school curriculum was evident in the proposed Junior Cycle framework. In contextualising its recommendations for reform, the CEB recognised the need for Ireland to re-assess its educational goals in the context of the late twentieth century. School programmes ‘should be framed within a cultural context which emphasises creativity, enterprise and innovation more than conformity and passive learning’. Students must be encouraged ‘to think in terms of identifying problems and considering solutions rather than “ always seeking absolute right or wrong answers to problems’. In order to achieve this, reform of the assessment system was vital. According to the board, the role of assessment in promoting student learning should take precedence over its role for the purpose of certification, and information about the progress of pupils should be ‘an integral and recurring part of teaching and learning’. The report recommended that external examinations at the end of Junior Cycle be phased out and replaced by school-based assessment. The Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) supported those recommendations – their members were willing to assess their own pupils for certification – they had done this since the School programmes ‘should be framed within a cultural context which emphasises creativity, enterprise and innovation more than conformity and passive learning’. Students must be encouraged ‘to think in terms of identifying problems and considering solutions rather than always seeking absolute right or wrong answers to problems’. ” 1940s for the Group Certificate and Technical Subjects exams (known as TS exams). The Association of Secondary Teachers (ASTI) had reservations – but more particularly in relation to high-stakes examinations like the Leaving Certificate. — 27 —
Towards a Better Future: A Review of the Irish School System The reforms proposed by the Curriculum and Examinations Board were not, however, implemented. In early 1986, in a government Cabinet re-shuffle, Gemma Hussey was removed as Minister for Education. Her successor, Patrick Cooney, was cautious. Advised by officials in the Department of Education, he distanced himself from the recommendations of the CEB. He referred the report back to the board, suggesting that ‘alternatives’ to some of the recommendations be considered (Coolahan, 2014). Shortly afterwards, the coalition government fell and Fianna Fáil came back into power. The CEB was disbanded and was replaced by a new board – the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA). Unlike the proposed statutory CEB, the NCCA would not have responsibility for examinations – its role would be an advisory, not an executive one. National Council for Curriculum and Assessment Within a short period of taking office, the new Minister for Education, Mary O’Rourke, announced that the Intermediate and Group Certificate examinations would be abolished and that a new unified certificate, the Junior Certificate, would replace them. It was envisaged that the new Junior Certificate would encompass the best aspects of curriculum and assessment of both the Group and the Intermediate Certificates and would include, as the Group Certificate had done, some elements of school-based assessment. However, this did not happen and the Junior Certificate, which was introduced in 1989, was modelled much more closely on the Intermediate Certificate than on the Group Certificate. School-based and continuous assessment, which had been a key feature of the Group Certificate, was largely discontinued except for a small number of subjects. A review of the Junior Certificate, undertaken ten years later by the NCCA, was critical of the influence of terminal examinations on pupil learning (NCCA, 1999). It stated: It was intended that the Junior Certificate would be awarded on the basis of a wide range of modes and techniques of assessment. …. In contrast to what was originally envisaged, the assessment of the Junior Cycle programme is dominated by terminal written examinations. The review stated that ‘there is an ongoing mismatch between the aims and principles of the Junior Certificate programme and the modes and techniques currently in use for the formal assessment of that programme’. It emphasised that the need for change was urgent and called on all the education partners ‘to engage fully as a matter of urgency and agree a way forward’. Primary Curriculum Review Body, 1990 In the meantime, Minister for Education, Mary O’Rourke, set up a Review Body on the Primary Curriculum, which reported in 1990 (Department of Education 1990). The review body broadly endorsed the underlying philosophy and principles of the 1971 curriculum but concluded that the — 28 —
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Towards a Better Future

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