Madam, – I am completing an action research project on the Leaving Cert Applied (LCA) program in my own school, the focus being the reluctance of students to choose this option. My aim is to raise the profile of LCA so I would be interested to hear why the media give so little coverage to this valuable programme?
For the self-esteem of those who choose this option, surely their results are just as important as the student who achieves 600 points? The focus is always on the high achievers, but we are supposed to be an inclusive society, and the message should be that we value all our students equally.
As far as I am aware the only pictures published in the national newspapers after the results were of the students who sat the regular Leaving Cert. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – My family and I are in recovery following the trauma of a fail in Leaving Cert Honours Maths.
The student was determined to study Engineering, but his dreams were smashed on results day.Because he took the time and effort to study the Higher programme for Maths, he took a gamble on a subject with a high failure rate, a subject attempted by only 16 per cent of Leaving Cert candidates.
Why bother take this terrible risk? An all-or-nothing decision is too big for any teen at this stressful time. Only a true gambler would risk these odds. Remember, an E in a Higher Maths paper is no Maths at all.
Would it not be more humane and yield more successful candidates if the Maths papers were to be taken in stages? For example, a candidate could sit Paper 1 for foundation, Papers 2 and 3 for an Ordinary Level result and Papers 3 and 4 for a Higher Level result.
These papers would run over two or three days, with candidates sitting as many papers as they require for their chosen CAO courses.
Candidates who attempt higher papers (but are unsuccessful) do not fail and therefore have alternative access to related courses, rather than being disqualified from the system and having to repeat the Leaving Cert.
This might encourage more candidates to attempt Honours Maths. – Yours, etc,