Letter to the Editor: Leaving Cert - It’s just about creating extra options

The Leaving Cert is just another step along the journey of life.  

I think that most of the coverage of the Leaving Certificate results is hype and is very unhelpful to students, teachers, and parents.

While the Leaving Cert is a big event, ultimately, it’s just another step along the journey of life. I am now 54 years old and I have completed three Leaving Certs in my time. I did the first when I was 18 and to be honest, it didn’t mean very much to me at the time. I completed the other two as a mature student (in my 20s), because I wanted to go to college. I might never have succeeded in my return to education, had it not been for the experience of completing that first Leaving Cert. Later on, still in my 20s, I completed a university degree. I have been teaching for the past 20 years, as well as doing an interesting variety of other skilled work, along the way.