According to the ‘Oxford English Dictionary’, the term ‘procrastination’ can be described as “the action of delaying or postponing something”. In the case of this government in relation to education, they have procrastinated for the previous month in regard to clarification about the Leaving Certificate examinations. They continue, however, to procrastinate by not giving students direct clarification on dates upon which the Leaving Certificate will be sat, closing dates for the CAO as well as due dates for various Leaving Certificate projects and in the act of postponing the examinations itself, even following the special announcement on Good Friday.
The consequences of the global COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly had its impacts on our nation as a whole but people fail to regard that the impact of the virus has filtered into the mental health of our students. As a Leaving Certificate student, I must admit I am dumbfounded at the grievous ineptitude that Education Minister Joe McHugh has displayed about the recent concerns regarding our student’s second-level education nationwide. As a Leaving Certificate student, who is subject to the collateral damage left behind by the government in their recent decisions, I would beg for the sanity of my fellow Leaving Cert students and I, that the Taoiseach reconsider his decisions in light of the educational purgatory I now find myself in. In my opinion, it is unfathomable how the Government expects students to sit exams which determine their future in the midst of a global pandemic while their nearest and dearest succumb to this deadly virus. The voice of frustration from students such as myself is becoming defining. Please Mr Varadkar, we deserve provisional dates and an immediate update on a CAO. That is clarification.
On the tenth of April 2020, Minister Joe McHugh made history by postponing the Leaving Certificate examinations and cancelling Junior Certificate examinations completely. The decision was made by the government to postpone our exams until “late July or early August” and also postponed due dates for projects in subjects such as geography, art and history until “late summer”. Although clarity was given to students sitting the Junior Certificate examinations, almost none was offered to myself and my fellow Leaving Certificate students. Ladies and Gentlemen, allow me to be blunt- we were not given clarification about our exams, we were given procrastination. The government with all of its power and might were able to offer 65,190 students a perfunctory attempt at delay-tactics.
I would like to make it crystal-clear that I am not ignorant in my knowledge of this unprecedented situation or the context of education during this pandemic. The status of the virus consumes me as I am compelled to evaluate and reflect upon it in every aspect of my new alternate reality. Not for a moment would I consider dismissing the government’s successful efforts in ‘flattening the curve’. I am simply highlighting that they have not evaluated every issue facing our country, more specifically in relation to education. I would also like to commend all essential workers and the government, in particular HSE workers who put their lives on the line for the protection of others and ensuring that I can resume my education in good health. However, where I feel Minister Joe McHugh has let our country down is in regard to education. As a Leaving Certificate student who is hoping to study English and history in college to become a teacher in those subjects, I would hope that if I was placed in a similar position in the future as administrator of state education, that those in power would walk in the shoes of my students and think of what it would be like to have your future placed in jeopardy. I believe Minister McHugh alongside his fellow government officials need to take the views of students into consideration before making decisions that will directly affect our lives, both our academic and mental well-being.
As a Leaving Certificate student with a network of people from various socio-economic backgrounds, I know first-hand how this severe lack of clarity surrounding exact dates and the outcome of the CAO is affecting myself and my fellow Leaving Certificate students. I am fortunate enough to be in a position where I have a safe environment to study but that is not the case for all Leaving Certificate students who may suffer in homes of abuse or live in emergency accommodation. Regardless of personal situations, it is extremely difficult and in some cases, almost impossible to teach ourselves many subject courses even with the help of our teachers. It is incomprehensible how students are expected to learn outside of this classroom-based environment. I also would argue that Minister McHugh is naive in his belief that a “minimum of two weeks” is enough to equate the eight weeks of teaching and mentoring time that we will have lost. There are also students who are forced to take care of young children as their parents are front line workers and therefore do not have time to study through no fault of their own. As students, we demanded clarity. We got procrastination. What was achieved through campaigning and fighting for our civil rights, is a vague idea of when delayed exams will happen and absolutely no clarity in regard to the CAO. However, vagueness is not clarity. I see no reason as to why the government could not have offered us a provisional date for exams and project due dates which would understandably be subject to change based upon the advice of the Chief Medical Officer Doctor Tony Holohan and the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET).
The ‘Irish Second-Level Students Union’ is our only representative body yet the ISSU has not been given an opportunity by the government to let our voices be heard. It was revealed by Ciara Fanning, President of the ISSU that they were only consulted thirty minutes before the public announcement about state exams on April 10th. This worrying gap of communication between the ISSU, who act as a single vocal entity for students and the government, in particular Minister McHugh, who are entrusted with the power to determine outcomes, is horrifying. This lack of engagement and consultation with students at the hands of the government is a disgrace and the radio silence by Minster McHugh for a month following school closures speaks volumes. The survey conducted by the ISSU had over 46,000 responses at the time of writing. Over 48% of Leaving Certificate students who took part in this survey advocated for the cancellation of exams and the implementation of predictive grading. As a point of information, the option chosen by McHugh was deemed the least preferable option by students in the ISSU’s survey. In response to the aforementioned results, the ISSU has offered a number of solutions including a ‘No Detriment’ policy which has already been introduced in Irish colleges and universities such as UCC and is favoured by their respective students. I cannot see why this policy would not be given the same weight in the situation facing second-level students. Why are we not being listened to?
As I am only a Leaving Certificate student and not an elected official, I am not in a position to make decisions. However, I am in a position to suggest solutions and demand clarity for my own academic and mental well-being. The ISSU has suggested a ‘No Detriment’ policy regarding the Leaving Certificate exams. This policy ensures that no student will suffer academically as a result of this ongoing crisis. This policy combines traditional written exams at a later date vaguely set out by the government as well as a predictive grading system suggested by almost half of Leaving Certificate students. This seems like it is a more viable and realistic solution once it is subject to appeal. I would strongly advise all Leaving Certificate students to investigate this and use your voice to demand clarity. Although there is no perfect solution to what is an extremely challenging problem, the government offering a vague mist as to the status of our futures and procrastination as a form of ‘clarity’ is causing students unneeded and additional stress at all already taxing time. Minister McHugh’s announcement did not give students clarity and a chance to complete their education. This announcement only furthers the snowball effect of the virus on our nation’s future minds in regard to the status of their education and is merely a fairytale in light of the reality facing us. As a direct consequence of this pandemic, students are faced with increased anxiety and many are suffering from environmental depression as a result of the difficult yet necessary ‘social distancing’ measures in place during this crisis. Understandably, the measures implemented by the government are imperative for the country overcoming the virus but as a direct consequence, the mental health of our nation’s students is deteriorating rapidly. McHugh’s input in tandem with Varadkar’s announcement has left the prospect of third-level education but a distant mirage. The lack of clarity in relation to the CAO offers students no hope in a time of great despair. At a time where there is an understandable focus on the physical health of our country, I’d like the government to pause for a moment and consider the deteriorating mental health of our nation’s students as a result of the decisions they have made in relation to education.
Overall, what I am asking of the government is simple. Reconsider your decisions. The ‘clarity’ offered on Good Friday left us feeling no different than the days previous. We demand clarification not procrastination. Students such as myself should not suffer academically as a result of this pandemic. We deserve to know what contingency plans are in place and to be given provisional dates for exams, which are understandably subject to change. We need to be informed of how the CAO will proceed and how college places will be awarded. We need to be informed of how and when scripts from our Leaving Certificate will be corrected and to what quality and standard. We need a solution for both the academic and mental well-being of over 65,000 students. We are the next generation of Éire. We are the ones adhering to the measures and deprivations of liberty imposed on us by the government to save the lives of others. We don’t need a thank you. We need clarification. So please, put yourselves in our shoes. We demand clarification, not procrastination.
Is riachtanas bunúsach bhfuair oideachais.
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