Calculated grades sees 64% fall in number of Leaving Certificate repeaters
The 64% reduction in the number of students unhappy with their results coincides with the cancellation of written examinations in the summer of 2020 due to Covid-19. Students were offered calculated grades, or the option to sit a written examination in winter of 2020, for each subject. Photo: Larry Cummins
Only 235 students repeated their Leaving Certificate in 2020, a drop of 64% on 2019 levels, following the introduction of calculated grades during the pandemic.
A report published by the Department of Education on Tuesday shows that the number of students who enrolled to repeat their Leaving Certificate fell from 655 in September 2019, to 235 in September 2020.
The 64% reduction in the number of students unhappy with their results coincides with the cancellation of written examinations in the summer of 2020 due to Covid-19. Students were offered calculated grades, or the option to sit a written examination in winter of 2020, for each subject.
The report also shows a decrease in the number of students who enrolled in Transition Year since the pandemic, down from 48,268 in 2019 to 47,544 in 2020, which was a u-turn in a number that had been steadily increasing from 42,891 in 2016.
Transition rates from post-primary to higher education jumped sharply in 2020, which the report suggests is most likely the result of additional places in higher education created in response to changes to the 2020 Leaving Certificate, and the lack of opportunities for school leavers to either seek employment or travel abroad because of public health restrictions.
The number of people going from post primary to higher education jumped by 4% in 2020 to 66.1%, from 62.1% in 2019. In DEIS schools, this was a jump of 5.3%, and in non-DEIS schools an increase of 3.8%.
The number of students in higher education studying remotely also saw a sharp increase on pre-pandemic levels. 14,239 students enrolled remotely in 2020, compared to 10,933 in 2019, and 7,385 in 2016.
"This report offers an important opportunity to assess what we have achieved, and also what more needs to be done to create a world-class education landscape in Ireland,” said Minister for Further and Higher Education, Simon Harris.
"One of my key priorities is removing barriers to third-level education. This report confirms transition rates rose to 66.1% in 2020, up from 62.1% in 2019. Among DEIS schools the rate was 46.7%, which is an improvement but leaves us with much more work to do throughout 2022,” he added.
The retention rate to the Leaving Certificate in DEIS schools stood at 84.8% for the 2014 entry cohort, up from 83.8% on the previous year, while the gap in retention between DEIS and non-DEIS schools fell to 8.6% in 2020, down from 9.3% in 2019.
The total number of teachers has risen by over 7,000 since 2016, and rose from 66,932 in 2019 to 69,343 in 2020. The primary school pupil-teacher ratio has fallen from 15 in 2019 to 14.5 in 2020, while in post-primary it has fallen from 12.8 to 12.3.
“I think it is heartening to see that a number of key indicators are continuing to trend in a positive direction, particularly the pupil-teacher ratio and the retention rates for DEIS students. We will continue to work to further address these key areas and ensure that there is progress right across the education sector,” said Minister for Education Norma Foley.
The Education Indicators for Ireland report covers all levels of education starting with early years and working through school education, further and higher education and through to lifelong learning, with most up-to-date data from 2020/2021 where possible, as well as an evaluation of how the education system has progressed since 2016.
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