Surge in Junior Cert students taking higher level maths as reforms kick in

More students did higher level maths in the Junior Certificate again this year as reforms in the subject continue to take effect in schools.

The increase to 54% of all students is a significant feature in the results being received by more than 60,000 people today, with the new Project Maths syllabus now almost completely rolled out to all schools.

The rise reflects the much bigger increases of recent years at Leaving Certificate, and has been welcomed by Education Minister Jan O’Sullivan.

As students get their grades at more than 720 schools today, Ireland’s education system was given mixed results on its performance compared to other EU and OECD countries.

While spending here is comparatively high, class sizes are among the biggest and teachers spend more time in class than their counterparts in most other countries. But, in return, they get some of the best salaries — a teacher with 15 years of service earns almost €9,000 more than an EU counterpart before counting the qualifications allowances paid to most in the profession here.

The OECD highlights Ireland’s progress in improving third-level access but also the relatively low numbers of younger children in pre-school education.

Only 42% of three-year- olds were in early education in 2012. The corresponding figure for four-year-olds jumped to 97% on the back of the Government-funded year of pre-school.

Among the 60,327 students getting Junior Certificate results, four have got As in 12 higher-level subjects — a feat achieved by 17 people a year ago.

Education Minister Jan O’Sullivan congratulated all students on their results, and thanked their teachers and parents for their support. But the role of teachers in the future of the junior cycle is still in question, as they remain in dispute over plans to have them assess their own students for the Junior Cycle Student Award that will replace the Junior Certificate.

Ms O’Sullivan said last week that she hopes to discuss their concerns again next month, but 17,000 members of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) are being pressed to vote in favour of stepping up their action to possible strikes.

However, question marks remain over the level of opposition to school-based assessment, after the Irish Examiner revealed yesterday another rise in the number of schools arranging Junior Certificate oral Irish tests that are not conducted by the State Examinations Commission.

The 14,172 students with results in oral Irish is one-third more than a year ago, and the number of schools where the tests were done is up from 196 a year ago to more than 250.

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