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The Leaving Certificate. Three words which needlessly strike fear into the hearts of

many. The title of this essay is ³The Leaving Certificate does not serve the needs of

students.´ I disagree with this statement as I feel that the Leaving Certificate serves its

students to the highest level, that it gives its students a broad education, that it teaches its

students valuable life skills, including stress management, and that it is a level playing field,

one that all students can succeed at.

According to the website www.curriculumonline.ie the aim of the leaving certificate is:

³The Leaving Certificate (Established) is a two -year programme that aims to provide learners with
a broad, balanced education while also offering them a chance to specialise towards a particular
career option.´

The Leaving Certificate most definitely adheres to this ³broad, balanced education´ - thirty

three subjects across a range of levels are offered to cater for every student. On top of this,

L.C.V.P (Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme) is widely available, and the Applied

Leaving Certificate is offered to those who require a more project based approach. This wide

range of subjects broadens the student¶s level of creativity and opens their mind. This broad

base also gives students a chance to find areas they enjoy, to specialize in that area (as stated

in the Leaving Certificate aims), and permits them to excel in their chosen field. Such a wide

education opens doors for our country¶s students, granting them access to Irish universities,

international universities, and a staggeringly large range of courses. For this reason the

Leaving Certificate serves its students well.

On top of this broad based approach, the Leaving Certificate also provides many other

valuable skills which serve its students well. These skills include time management,

organization, how to cope under pressure, how to work to a deadline and importantly the

value of perseverance and dedication.

 If one glances at this list of skills, one can readily see that these skills are all those

highly valued in the workplace. Those who are against the Leaving Cert will argue that it is a

closed system, which does not relate to the outside world, yet from this list it is blatantly

obvious that that is untrue.

Look at the list again: time management, organization, how to cope under pressure,

how to work to a deadline, perseverance and dedication. Without those skills, no one can

hope to succeed in the State examinations- or in any walk of life.

Taking any exam requires focus and commitment, and the Leaving Certificate is no

exception. Every year students achieve excellent results. Why? These students learnt to

apply themselves diligently, and through the Leaving Certificate, they learnt valuable life

skills of organization and preparation. No wonder Irish graduates are in such high demand at

home and abroad- their education prepared them for the traditional workplace full of

problems and deadlines.

It is often reported that Leaving Certificate students suffer from what is

regularly termed ³acute stress´. In my opinion, this is not true. The ones who are most often

giving a spiel on this ³stress´ are parents- not the students sitting the exams. The students

sitting the exams are busy working hard; to attain the best results they can, while their elders

complain about the workload for them.

Heaven forbid anyone should encounter stress. Stress, in it itself, is an

everyday occurrence. It will occur in the workplace after the student has long graduated from

Third Level. It is probably a good thing that they lean stress management skills now so that

in later life they can cope- as those opposing the Leaving Certificate so strongly wish.

Besides, stress felt by examination students can be a positive thing- it can spur them on,

encourage them to work, and through that the student may attain better results. Chances are

any cases of acute stress are being caused by nonstop discussions on the topic by Team Anti-
Leaving Cert. Stress is a part of everyday life, and for this reason I feel its part in the

Leaving Certificate serves its students well.

Another claim made by the proposition of the statement ³The Leaving Certificate

does not serve the needs of students´, is that the Leaving Certificate coursework is out dated.

This is most definitely untrue- take the new coursework of Project Maths for example:

³Project Maths involves the introduction of revised syllabuses for both Junior and Leaving
Certificate Mathematics. It involves changes to what students learn in mathematics, how they
learn it and how they will be assessed.

Project Maths aims to provide for an enhanced student learning experience and greater levels of
achievement for all. Much greater emphasis will be placed on student understanding of
mathematical concepts, with increased use of contexts and applications that will enable students to
relate mathematics to everyday experience.

The initiative will also focus on developing students¶ problem-solving skills. Assessment will
reflect the different emphasis on understanding and skills in the teaching and learning of
mathematics.´

-From http://www.projectmaths.ie/overview/

The introduction of project maths proves that the Leaving cert is far from outdated; in

fact the modernization shows how forward thinking the system is. The new maths syllabus is

not the only recent reform- biology was revised in the last two years to reflect changes in the

scientific community, religion as an as an exam subject was first examined in 2005, the new

Leaving Certificate Irish course will first be examined in 2012, with the emphasis now on the

spoken language. All these changes clearly show that the Leaving Certificate is not an out

dated course, and as we all know, its modern take serves its students well.

Many will argue that the Leaving Certificate is an unfair system, that only the wealthy

can succeed, as they will have access to extra resources.. This statement is blatantly untrue.

The Leaving Certificate is the fairest system there is- every student sits the same paper, they

may choose the level that best suits them, they may choose subjects they enjoy and are

interested in. The State Examinations Commission (S.E.C.) also make ³all reasonable

accommodations´ for those with disabilities, whether this is extra time added on to the exam,
the use of a scribe or the use of a typewriter or laptop. Due to all these factors, the Leaving

Certificate is a level playing field, all have an equal chance, and it serves the needs of its

students adequately.

To sum up, I disagree with the statement that ³The Leaving Certificate does not serve

the needs of students.´ I feel that the Leaving Certificate is a well thought out exam format,

that gives students a broad educational base, life skills, and that it is fair, and for that reason,

the Leaving Certificate caters to the needs of its students.