Cutbacks directly affect take-up of subjects, say teachers

THE fall in numbers taking some Leaving Certificate subjects is a direct result of cutbacks in schools, the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland has claimed.

There were 3.4% fewer candidates for physics in last June’s exams and almost 5% fewer took German than in 2010. ASTI president Brendan Broderick said these statistics strongly indicate that some schools have had to drop such subjects from their timetables.

The Leaving Certificate class of 2011 started their two-year preparation for exams in September 2009 with budget cuts affecting teacher numbers in second level schools, which previous surveys for the union had found was leading to some schools dropping minority subjects.

The changes had also forced some subjects — including maths and science subjects — to be taught to classes of mixed ability instead of having separate classes for higher and ordinary level.

“We always maintained that worsening the pupil-teacher ratio would force schools to drop subjects and classes. What is now emerging is that strategically important subjects have been dropped by some schools,” Mr Broderick said.

He warned that further cuts to staffing levels, currently being considered by the Department of Education in the absence of other significant cost savings, would force more schools to drop subjects that are vital to economic recovery.

The 6,516 students sitting physics papers this year is 229 fewer than last year, although numbers taking it to Leaving Certificate had also fallen by almost 3% in each of the previous two years.

There were 350 fewer candidates for German exams this year, and almost 600 less than the 7,500 who took the subject in 2009.

A 5% fall in numbers taking the Leaving Certificate Applied, a course with less academic focus aimed at students otherwise at risk of dropping out of school, and lower performance rates among the 3,191 students who did it this year has also been blamed on staffing and funding cuts to schools offering the programme.

However, this claim by the Teachers’ Union of Ireland’s was rejected by the Department of Education, which said that there was a corresponding 5% increase in numbers completing the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme, another initiative with more focus on student development than on high academic achievement.