9
th March 2021
Dear Parents & Students,
We look forward to seeing you all, students and parents tomorrow evening at the Senior Option Information evening, which will give information on the LC, LCVP, LCA and TY. We are also looking forward to more engagement from 3rd years over the next few weeks. It will not be long until we are back in school.
Today, we received some clarification from the Department regarding the assessment and certification for this year’s 3
rd year students:
‘In 2021, Junior Cycle students’ progress and learning achievements will be recognised through a dual form of certification designed to meet the current exceptional circumstances presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.
For each student certification will involve two elements
- A State Certificate of Completion of the Junior Cycle from the Department of Education.
- A School Report detailing the learning achievements of the student during their Junior Cycle programme.’
A detailed breakdown of the assessment methods to be used for this school-based report is still to be finalised in MCS but
will include:
- a school-based end of year exam held in May in accordance with all public health guidelines
- an element of calculated grading informed by the student’s body of work and ongoing continuous assessment (including online engagement and attendance).
- The report will also incorporate the student’s other areas of learning or achievement
With all this in mind and with 3 weeks of online blended learning still ahead of us, it is important that all 3
rd year students increase both their online engagement and attendance. Teachers are currently revising, assessing and even introducing new content which will all be integral to the process of assessing students for the school-based report.
It is also important to highlight at this point that student’s results and engagement over the next few weeks and months will have
implications as they progress to Senior Cycle, be that TY or 5th Year.
And so, we are asking all students to:
- Please attend all your classes as per school timetable
- Engage with the content and complete all assignments in format requested by the teacher
- Communicate with your teacher regarding any questions or problems that may arise
And we are asking parents to:
- Encourage students to attend all online classes as per school timetable
- Use Compass to enter any absences from class
- Communicate with the teachers or Mr. Coughlan regarding any issues which may arise
- Check Compass regularly to see if there are any concerns raised by teachers
We know that online learning is not easy and that you would all love to be back in school meeting your teachers and your friends.
That day is coming soon but, in the meantime, it is important that we make one big final push to increase our attendance and engagement up to the Easter holidays. The hard work will pay off!
We have attached the Guidelines received today.
We look forward to seeing you at the Senior Cycle Information Night tomorrow night.
Thanks and Kind regards,
Siobhán McCarthy Chris Coughlan (Yearhead)