Proposed changes to Irish Leaving Certificate

Leaving Cert students should be assessed on a staggered basis over two years instead of facing a single set of summer exams, according to groups consulted as part of an official review of the senior cycle.

The proposal is one of a series that, if agreed, would amount to the biggest changes in the Leaving Cert in half a century.

The findings are contained in consultations with more than 2,500 students and hundreds of parents and teachers across 41 schools as part of a review of the senior cycle by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment.

The proposals will feed into a report to Minister for Education Joe McHugh later this year with proposals for reforming the senior cycle.

Sources say a consensus has emerged across schools, parents and students that the structure of senior cycle should be made more flexible, with exams spaced out and a much broader array of assessment methods such as projects, teamwork and portfolios.

Schools, students and parents agree the current system is “too academic” and should offer more vocational and technical pathways.