Learning the hard way about changes to Junior Cycle reform

The proposed Junior Cycle programme has run into strong opposition from teachers. How radical are the changes and what do they mean, asks Education Correspondent Niall Murray

IT HAS been the subject of controversy in education circles for almost 18 months but Education Minister Ruairi Quinn looks set to plough ahead with his radical changes to how students are assessed on their first three years of second-level education.

While much of the focus has been on the substantive — and very important — question of who should examine students, the bigger picture of the wider proposals may have been lost on the general public, particularly to parents and students.