Latest update: Information for students and their families about returning to school
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Information for students and their families about returning to school
From Department of Education and Skills
Published at:
Last updated
Below are four videos we have created with some back to school advice for parents and children attending primary and post-primary school. You are encouraged to watch these videos with your child before they return to school.
Back to school advice for junior infants to second class
Everyone has been working very hard to ensure a safe reopening of schools for staff, students and their families.
Most students will be looking forward to going back to school and will feel happy and excited. Some may feel a little anxious about returning. That’s a normal response at a time of change. Most will settle back in soon once they get used to the new rules and routines.
For more information and a downloadable flyer click here
Up to date information on what to do if your child has symptoms of coronavirus, how to get urgent medical help if your child is unwell and how to protect your child from the coronavirus can be found here.
Here is some guidance on key issues relating to school reopening that schools and parents may find helpful in answering some of their questions:
Assessment Arrangements For Junior Cycle and Leaving Certificate Examinations 2021
Assessment Arrangements 2021 – Printable Version
This document sets out the adjusted assessment arrangements for post- primary students taking certificate examinations in the 2020/21
school year. These arrangements are designed to take account of
the disrupted learning experienced by students during the 2019/20 school year. The adjustments have been arrived at through discussions between the Department of Education and Skills (DES), the State Examinations Commission (SEC) and the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) and keystakeholders.
As schools have significant autonomy in determining how to sequence
and pace learning for students in their schools, no centrally prescribed adjustment of the curriculum and courses of study would be effective for students taking the certificate examinations in 2021. Consequently, the most appropriate way to reflect and take account of the challenges for students that have occurred in 2019/20 and may occur in 2020/21 is to incorporate adjustments to the certificate examinations in 2021.
As the loss of learning through school closures will have affected students’ engagement with their course of study in different ways, the adjustments put in place will play to student strengths by leaving intact the familiar overall structure of the examinations, while incorporating additional choice. In some cases, theadjustment measures will provide more time for tuition by, for example, reducing preparatory work for practical examinations. In addition, briefs for coursework will be issued at least a month earlier in the school year to provide certainty for students.
Changes to the national assessment arrangements have been made with due regard for the principles of equity, fairness and integrity as these principles apply to assessment and examinations and refer to student- to-student, subject-to-subject, and year-to-year comparisons.
Overall, the changes can be viewed as reflecting and recognising a loss of learning time in the 2019/20 school year in a fair manner, with some contingency for future learning loss that may occur during the 2020/21 school year also built in. They provide clarity, certainty and reassurance to students, their parents/guardians,teachers and schools in advance of the start of the 2020/2021 school year.
The document details the adjusted assessment arrangements for every subject/ module descriptor in the Leaving Certificate Established, Leaving Certificate Applied, Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme and Junior Cycle programmes. When you click on the relevant subject title, you will be brought to the page detailing the particular arrangements for that subject.
Further update ahead of schools reopening
Minister @NormaFoleyTD1 provides further update ahead of schools reopening https://t.co/6UXBmGTl2Z
— education.ie (@Education_Ire) August 21, 2020
STEPUP to Secondary School
Website helping students and parents with the move from primary school to secondary school.
Please click on icon to bring you to website – 
Roadmap to Reopening our post primary schools
Minister for Education Norma Foley publishes Roadmap to enable safe return to schools along with €375m support package. For more info go to https://t.co/QsiMWEddKJ pic.twitter.com/eLzN3fnESe
— education.ie (@Education_Ire) July 27, 2020