Changes to the way Leaving Cert science subjects are examined will widen educational inequalities as most schools do not have the necessary access to labs, or equipment, teachers have warned.
The Irish Science Teachers’ Association (ISTA) has concerns about planned changes to Leaving Cert biology, physics, and chemistry, due to be rolled out from next September as part of senior cycle reform.
“We are not against reform,” said ISTA chairman Humphrey Jones. “We recognise the need for it. Science is always changing, always evolving.
“The current syllabi we teach are over 20 years old, and a lot has happened in those 20 years.
However, most schools do not have adequate labs to roll out the planned additional assessment component (AAC), worth 40%.
It is envisaged that students will develop different skills over the course of their studies and carry out an individual science experiment in the classroom in sixth year.
“They will gather the data and analyse it, write their report based on what they thought might happen and what actually happened,” Mr Jones said.
“It’s really good scientific practice, and I’m not necessarily against the notion of an assessment like this.
“If they have labs, they might not have enough money to buy the necessary materials. The concept then of asking our students to carry out an individual experiment in that space causes a number of concerns. One, where are the resources coming from? There’s only a limited number of glassware, a limited number of materials.
“Where do resources come from? Where do the funds come from? Are we going to ask our students to pay for their equipment?
“Each of those experiments will have their own individual risk requirements. I see that there is enormous merit in the concept but there aren’t sufficient resources in Irish schools currently to allow that to happen effectively.
“Despite the fact that this has been flagged, we’ve known since last March that the changes to the sciences were going to be introduced next September. No provision was made in the recent budget for additional supplies or additional resources or the construction of new labs or the stocking of labs.
“We can’t have reform unless the planning around that, which includes training of teachers, preparing necessary documents, assessment procedures, and the funding of resources, is managed carefully.”
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