ACCS/Info Bulletin 59/18

Fri, Dec 28th, 2018

The Secretary,
Board of Management and
School Principal in
each Community and Comprehensive School.

Members of the Executive of ACCS.

ACCS/Info Bulletin 59/18

Re: Junior Cycle Changes Circular Letter 0079/2018

Circular Letter 0079/2018 supersedes Circular 0015/2017 and sets out the arrangements now governing the implementation of the Framework for Junior Cycle 2015, with particular reference to the school year 2018/19. The following bulletin summarises the main changes in Junior Cycle for schools for the school year 2018/19.

  • The following new subject specifications were introduced to those students entering first year in September 2018: Mathematics, Home Economics, Music, History and Geography.

  • The time-bands during which the CBAs, Subject Learning and Assessment Review (SLAR) meetings and Assessment Task (where relevant) in the different Junior Cycle subjects can be completed have been broadened which will allow schools greater flexibility to organise the timing of the CBA in a way that suits the learning needs of students and the organisational needs of the school. The change also allows for greater flexibility for schools to integrate other relevant learning experiences such as co-curricular or extra-curricular activities into their yearly timetable. While the existing dates in subject Assessment Guidelines are no longer mandatory, they may still serve as a guide to schools in selecting dates that complement the learning needs of students and the organisational needs of the school. The scheduling of CBAs and associated SLAR meetings within the wider time-bands is a matter for the management of the school. Notwithstanding the increased flexibility provided, the CBAs must be completed within the time period allocated (3 weeks, 4 weeks etc.) as specified in the Assessment Guidelines for each subject. In order to ensure effective SLAR meetings, it is recommended that the timing of the completion of CBAs and SLAR meetings remain as close together as the situation in specific school contexts allows. The SLAR meeting should take place no more than a month after the completion of the CBA. The Assessment Task following CBA2 should be scheduled within a week of completion of the CBA.

  • Level 1 Learning Programmes (L1LPs) including associated short courses are available to schools from September 2018. L1LPs will be reported on for the first time in the JCPA in 2021.

  • Students who commenced third year in September 2018 and who will sit the Junior Certificate/Cycle examination in 2019 will be the last cohort of students to sit the current Junior Certificate examination in Civic, Social and Political Education (CSPE). The NCCA CSPE short course (100 hours) is the most up-to-date curriculum option available. Further advice on planning is available in the Wellbeing Guidelines. Assessment in CSPE will be school-based from the 2019/20 school year for all year groups.

  • Typically, students will study a minimum of 8 and a maximum of 10 subjects for final examination, the exact number being dependent on whether the student is also taking short courses. Exceptions to the above requirement should in general only be made in the cases of students with additional educational needs who may take a lower number of subjects, combined in some cases with Level 2 or Level 1 learning programmes. It will be the responsibility of the school to ensure that students are entered for the correct number of subjects for final examination.

  • Where students take subjects outside of a recognised school setting these subjects cannot satisfy the requirements for CBAs by recognised schools and cannot, therefore, be included as part of the JCPA. In addition, the study of extra subjects outside of school may lead to a student undertaking more than the maximum number of subjects for certification. JCPAs will not be awarded in respect of students who have elected to be home schooled, as the JCPA is designed as a school-based award. The State Examinations Commission (SEC) can provide these students with a statement of the results of their final examinations.

  • The Department’s Wellbeing Policy Statement and Framework for Practice 2018-2023, which was published in July 2018, will support schools in the Wellbeing promotion, review and development process which can inform planning for 400 hours of engagement. In selecting programmes or resources developed by external facilitators schools should refer to Circular Letter 0043/2018 – Best practice guidance for post primary schools in the use of programmes and/or external facilitators in promoting wellbeing. Schools may introduce units of learning to cover part of a Wellbeing programme. However, the rationale for the inclusion of these units in the school’s Wellbeing programme must be clear. It is important that they are linked to the six wellbeing indicators, that the learning about wellbeing they address is clearly outlined and that they are inclusive of all students in Junior Cycle. Optional wellbeing-related initiatives which engage a small number of students only should not be counted as part of the Wellbeing programme as they do not include all students in the year group. Staff, parents and students should be involved when a school’s Wellbeing programme is being developed. There is a series of appendices in the Junior Cycle Wellbeing Guidelines to support schools in this process.

  • Schools that currently offer the Junior Certificate School Programme (JCSP) may continue to do so. A review of JCSP will commence in 2018. No new applications are currently being accepted from schools for entry to the JCSP.

  • All assessment for Final Examination purposes remains externally devised & assessed by the SEC.

  • Schools should plan for the replacement of in-house examinations with CBAs for students in 2nd year and 3rd year, where relevant.

  • In some instances, students’ work, developed as part of the CBA process, may need to be recorded and/or stored online. For example, teachers will record samples of presentations made by students which will be used for discussion at the SLAR meetings. In all instances, when recording and storing students’ work, teachers and schools are required to act in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), in force since 25 May 2018, and child protection requirements.

  • Guidelines for the Classroom-Based Assessment of each NCCA-developed short course are available at https://curriculumonline.ie/. It may be necessary, in the case of short courses, for schools to consider SLAR meetings electronically with teachers of short courses from other schools.

  • In the case of an Irish-medium school, the teacher can be facilitated to participate in a SLAR meeting with another Irish-medium school. The potential of information and communications technology (ICT) to support such meetings may be explored.

  • Every student must have the opportunity to undertake the Assessment Task in line with the arrangements set out by the SEC in order to be eligible for the full Final Examination marks. Any logistical issues arising from the provision of access arrangements are matters to be resolved at school level, as is the case for all classroom activities linked to the State Examinations. Detailed guidance in relation to the arrangements for the completion of the Assessment Task in individual subjects will be issued by the State Examinations Commission as the independent body responsible for the administration of the Final Examinations.

  • Formal reporting on the progress and achievements of students will be through annual reports in first year and second year, and through the composite Junior Cycle Profile of Achievement which is to issue from the school within the calendar year of the examination.

  • The NCCA has developed reporting templates in line with the style and format of the JCPA. Schools are encouraged to develop their own reporting formats along similar lines. This formal report will be supplemented by a range of other forms of reporting throughout the school year, including parents' meetings and a range of informal written and oral feedback on student progress.

  • From September 2019 it will be possible for each school to enter more than four short courses on (PPOD). Students who enter first year in September 2019 may undertake one or more of the NCCA Wellbeing short courses as part of a Wellbeing Programme, in addition to a maximum of four other non-wellbeing short courses, and these will first be reported in the JCPA in 2022. This JCPA design is currently being developed.

  • Schools will be required to save the JCPA of each student – either electronically or in paper copy. In order to save a full copy of the JCPA, which includes details of Other Areas of Learning, the final JCPA for each student should be scanned and retained electronically or alternatively a hard copy should be retained on file. Schools should retain copies of the JCPA for 7 years after the age of majority (18). The retained records should be used to meet requests by students for their JCPA, including after the students have left the school. Schools should have regard in this context to the GDPR requirements introduced in May 2018.

  • As the technology to support data entry and JCPA production is in development and evolving, it is recognised that there remains a particular data entry requirement on schools regarding the production of the JCPA in respect of the 2018 examinations. In recognition of this, it is proposed to pay an administration grant to schools to support this in 2018. Further details in this matter will be issued shortly. The data entry process will be refined and streamlined in future years with the intention that data relating to student achievement will be entered only once. The inputting of this information will form an integral part of the role of individual teachers as part of their allocation of professional time in the future.

  • The deployment of all professional time is a matter for the management of the school acting in accordance with the terms of this Circular Letter. All time periods provided to support implementation of the Junior Cycle must be used for this purpose under the overall direction of the school’s management and the use of professional time may be subject to inspection in whole-school evaluation and other inspections.

  • Pending the rollout of leadership posts in schools, (Circular Letter 0003/2018) the provision of the management resources hours for the 2018/19 academic year is retained at a reduced level. The revised allocation of hours for 2018/19 is as follows:

·         Enrolment ·         In-school weekly coordination hours

·         700 + ·          2.25 hours

·         600 – 699 ·          2.45 hours

·         400 – 599 ·          1.95 hours

·         < 399 ·         1.5 hours

Is mise,
le mór mheas,



_________________
John Irwin,
General Secretary ACCS.

Paul Thornton