Information Evening New Junior Cycle Assessment and ReportingSwords Community College11th November 2019

Contents of this Presentation

• Why change is needed in Junior Cycle• What will be different?• Curriculum and Assessment• Reporting

Why Change?ESRI Research• Many students are turned off learning in

Junior Cert• The JC exam is the dominant feature of

teaching and learning in many Irish Classrooms• The world has changed• There is a narrow range of assessment

activity – lots of tests!

What is the purpose of education in the new Junior Cycle?• Help students become better learners

and develop a love of learning.• Provide a solid foundation for further

study.• To develop skills for learning and life.• To support learning through improved

reporting to both students and parents.

A Changing Culture of Assessment• Assessment in reporting of learning• Assessment focused on offering

effective feedback• Greater variety of assessment activity –

“fit for purpose” and relevant to students• Teachers talking to teachers about

assessment • Building capacity, knowledge and

confidence in assessment, in schools

Subject Implementation

Furthermore:• Other areas of

learning can be reported on

• Schools can offer Level 2 Learning Programmes (L2LPs)

• Schools can offer shortcourses

Your child is already involved in…• Reviewing feedback and identifying what

they have done well• Identifying what to do next• Setting and achieving personal goals• Redrafting and correcting their own work• Giving feedback to others• Considering examples of work and

identifying how they can improve on their own work

Structure of Assessment in the New Junior CycleAll new courses incorporate three elements (two of which are new) to the assessment of students:1. Classroom Based Assessment

(CBAs)2. Assessment Tasks (ATs)3. Final Assessment (FA)

One Subject’s Journey

Assessment Subjects

Exams will be set, held and marked by the State Examinations Commission in June of 3rd Year

• English, Irish and Maths specified at Higher and Ordinary Levels• All other subjects at a Common Level• Duration of 2 hours or less

Changes in Student Assessment

Each subject has 2 CBAs -

one in 2nd Year, one

before Christmas in

3rd yearShort

Courses have 1 CBA

only

Each CBA will be

followed by a Subject Learning

and Review (SLAR)

Meeting.

The results of the CBAs

will be communicat

ed to students

and parents and a

record kept in the

school.

The results that are

communicated to the

students will be

formative, giving clear outline of

how improvemen

ts can be made

The CBA in 3rd

year will be

followed by an

Assessment Task which sill

be forwarded to the State

Exams Commis

sion (SEC) in

June

The students will receive the results

of the terminal exam (which

includes the AT)in mid-September from the SEC

Classroom Based Assessment

• CBAs provide students with opportunities to demonstrate their learning and skills in ways not possible in a pen and paper examination, for example, their verbal communication and investigation skills

• CBAS will be undertaken in subjects in the new Junior Cycle including short courses and will be facilitated by the classroom teacher

When will the CBAs be held and what is involved?

CBAs will be undertaken

during a defined

period within normal class contact time

and to a national

timetable.

Students will complete

one CBA in Second Year and one in Third Year.

Students complete

assignments under the

guidance of their subject

teacher.

How are CBAs assessed?The students CBAs are assessed by their teachers using a nationally agreed marking system designed by the National

Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) – called Features of Quality

The CBAs will be reported on in the Junior Cycle Profile of Achievement (JCPA) using the following descriptors:• Exceptional• Above Expectations• In Line with Expectations• Yet to Meet Expectations

Assessment Task

• Once the CBA2 is completed, students in 3rd Year will complete a written Assessment Task

• The Assessment Task is based on the student’s CBA and will involve the student completing the written Assessment Task in an exam style booklet

• These assessment tasks will be completed in line with a nationally agreed schedule

• The Assessment Task, set by the NCCA, is undertaken during normal class time and will be sent to the State Examnations Commission (SEC) for marking

• The Assessment Task is worth 10% of the students overall result.

Assessment – Short Courses• One Classroom-Based Assessment

in each Short Course• School reports to parents and

students• All assessment in Short Courses is

school-based

Other Areas of Learning

• The school has flexibility to report on other learning experiences/events that the student has participated in outside the formal timetabled curriculum such as;

• Engagement with co-curricular or extra-curricular activities such as science competition, school’s sporting activities or debating.

• Specific learning opportunities that do not for part of subjects or short courses, i.e; leadership training, activities relating to guidance, membership of school clubs or societies; membership of school’s student council.

• Engagements that form part of the formal timetabled curriculum but not reported on in other sections of the JCPA i.e; engagement with elements of the PE, SPHE, religious education or CSPE programmes.

Grades• Distinction 90-100%

• Higher Merit 75-89%

• Merit 55-74%

• Achieved 40 -54%

• Partially Achieved 20-39%

• Not Graded Less than 20%

• Parents should note that the grading system for new subject specifications on the new Junior Cycle course will change.• Instead of A,B,C, D, E,F

and NG the following will be used.

Student Assessment

In Sept/Oct/Nov, the school will upload the data it holds on each of the students through

the Post-Primary Online Database

Other Areas of LearningPriority learning Units, if anyShort CoursesEach CBA

This data will be added to the SEC results and a final cert –

Junior Cycle Profile of Achievement (JCPA) will issue

to the student by Christmas

Junior Cycle Profile of Achievement (JCPA)

SEC ResultsCBA Results

Other Areas of LearningWellbeing from 2020

Ensuring Quality

• Schools will organise ‘Subject Learning Assessment Review’ meetings• Teachers will compare their

assessment of students’ work and ensure a common approach across the school• CPD will be provided for teachers to

ensure that the CBAs align to a national standard