cont… currently plays in
secondary education could be
altered over the coming years,
since some of its ‘unique selling
points’ (short courses, aspects of
continuous assessment,
collaborative project work, use of
portfolios to assess learning, etc.)
will now be integrated into First,
Second, and Third Year classes. tests are those such as the
Leaving Certificate, where the
results have very direct and
important implications for the
test-takers in terms of
qualifications or future
opportunities) – in other words,
when what gets taught in class is
determined by what will be tested
at the end.
Many of us will recognise the
truth in the observation by
George Madaus, a renowned
researcher of educational testing
and measurement, that “when
test results are the sole or even
partial arbiter of future
educational or life choices,
society tends to treat test results
as the major goal of schooling
rather than as a useful but fallible
indicator of
achievement” (Madaus, 1988).
This was a criticism of the
tendency in many countries for
classroom instruction to become
shaped by the backwash from
high-stakes testing (high-stakes TY is not immune from this
phenomenon. Gerry Jeffers has
previously highlighted how
schools that offer Transition Year
can sometimes struggle with
striking a balance between
academic work in core subjects
and a broader TY curriculum. He
describes TY as being “in
continual danger of being
colonised by [the] values and
practices” associated with the
Leaving Certificate because of the
extreme pressure students face in
Fifth Year and Sixth Year
(Jeffers, 2011). With this in mind,
it should be noted that the NCCA
began a review of senior cycle
!
!
education in February 2018,
which will eventually include
consultations with schools and a
broader consultation that will be
open to the public. Given the
changes that have taken place in
junior cycle in recent years, it will
be interesting to see whether any
similar changes are proposed for
senior cycle and – if so – what
the role of TY would be in the
broader picture of a six-year
second-level education.
!
!
LEARNING FROM TY
At the risk of sounding
predictable (as an educational
researcher!), I believe that there
is much that could be gained
from further research on a
number of aspects of the TY
progra mme – both in its own
right (to inform the future
development of TY) and also
more broadly, for what this
unusual year can tell us about
education and student
development at other points in
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T Y UPDATE SPRING 2018
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