Leaving Cert reforms too risky for student learning and teachers’ health

Sir, – Breda O’Brien’s article (“Farcical Leaving Cert reform must stop now”, Opinion, October 17th) deserves the strongest support.

As a practising science teacher, I also commend Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin and Prof Pauline Mellon from the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment’s Mathematics Development Group for highlighting the issues as a result of their concerns about the proposed senior cycle reforms. Students, parents, employers and the State should also share this concern.

The proposal to award 40 per cent of Leaving Cert marks for these research projects also poses a serious threat to examination integrity. Does this serve our students well in a competitive points race?

Artificial intelligence (AI) can produce a project report of high standard in minutes. How can we reliably establish that submitted work represents a student’s own knowledge and understanding of the subjects of physics, chemistry and biology?

The credibility and international standing of the Leaving Cert must not be put at risk.

An independent report, written by Prof Michael Watts and based on responses from 351 secondary schools in Ireland, raises alarming health and safety concerns about the proposed laboratory-based research investigations in the new physics, chemistry and biology curriculums.

Analysis of the data showed many laboratories lacked adequate facilities to support such student research investigations. Teachers are expected to supervise different experiments simultaneously without laboratory technician support.

The Watts Report recommended to the Department of Education that implementation of these research projects should be paused on health and safety grounds. Why has this warning not been heeded?

At a time when schools are struggling to recruit qualified teachers of science and mathematics, the increasing workload on teachers, concerns about legal responsibility and increased stress, without adequate laboratory technical support, will make teaching an unattractive profession.

This farcical Leaving Cert reform must stop now. – Yours, etc,

ADRIEANNE HEALY,

Castleknock,

Dublin 15.