Leaving Cert results - Colleges can loosen up on mathematics

TODAY some 51,000 former pupils will wake up to realise that this is the first day in a new stage of their lives. They have finished secondary school and must make some momentous decisions about their future.

Education Minister Mary Hanafin called on students who did well in specific subjects to consider carefully what third level subjects they wish to pursue. The Government is still vitally interested in mathematics and the sciences, because there is a level of guaranteed investment in skilled, technological areas, provided we can produce the skilled workforce.

For the past five years, the numbers taking higher level mathematics in the Leaving Certificate had been below 20%. The difficulty of the examination is usually cited as a major reason for the low numbers. This naturally has a knock-on impact on both the entry and the performance of students in many third-level disciplines.