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How many students, exactly, are affected by errors in the Leaving Cert calculated grade system?
The exact number of students who will receive higher grades will not be available until a series of verification checks are completed. However, the Department of Education says it is likely to be in the region of 6,500.
Most students will ascend a single grade, which at the top level equates to about 10 CAO points.
No student will receive a reduced grade in any subject as a result of this process.
How many students will be entitled to higher CAO preferences from this?
It’s hard to say for sure. Typically, just under one in five students who get upgrades are eligible for a higher preferred course.
This means, in theory, that around 1,300 students could be entitled to a higher preferred university course.
In reality, the number will be lower because not all affected students have applied to go to college; some will have already secured their first preferred course; and some who are entitled to a superior offer may choose not to accept it.
I guess these students may need anywhere from a few hundred to 1000 new college places.
Will upgraded students be able to take a higher preferred course in the current academic year?
The Higher Education Department will work with the CAO and third-tier universities to ensure that these students are offered higher preferred courses, where appropriate.
Education Minister Norma Foley says “every effort will be made” to ensure these students can start next year, and institutions of higher education have said they do everything possible to accommodate students.
However, it remains to be seen whether students who qualify for very high demand courses, such as dentistry and medicine, will be able to take these courses this year, given that many have reached their full capacity.
When will students know if they have been updated?
The Education Department will contact students who will receive improved grades as soon as all verifications are completed. This will likely take several days.
Submit a corrected file of student results to the CAO so that colleges can determine whether a student should receive a new offer and do everything possible to facilitate their admission.
Any student who would have been entitled to a different offer in previous rounds of the CAO if they received the correct grade on September 7, will receive this offer or a deferred offer as soon as possible after the results update.
How did the error occur?
Two errors were discovered in the coding used to implement the standardization process, which adjusted the estimated teacher ratings up or down.
The first error was in a line of code programmed by an outside contractor, the Canadian company Polymetrika International Inc.
The error affected the way the candidates’ Junior Cycle results were included in the standardization process.
The aggregated Junior Cycle results of students in Irish, English and Mathematics were intended to be included in the data used by the national standardization process, along with their other two best subjects.
This was intended to build a picture about the likely performance of an individual class on the Leaving Cert.
However, the error meant that students’ scores in their two weakest subjects ended up being used.
As a result, in some subjects, students received calculated grades that were lower than they should have been and some received grades that were higher.
Was that the only mistake?
No. A second error was discovered while performing checks related to the rectification of the first error.
It meant that the results of the Junior Cycle of the subject Civic, Social and Political Education (CSPE) were included by mistake in the data mentioned above. This topic was not allowed to be used in the standardization process.
What happens now?
Errors are being rectified and the process is being rechecked with a series of independent checks in progress.
An American company ETS Educational Testing Service, which specializes in educational measurement, is reviewing aspects of the coding.
Once this is completed, the department says it will have complete information on which students will benefit from the improved grades and the specific subjects involved for each student.
What can students do in the meantime?
Not much besides waiting for the revised results. The Department of Education has established a helpline and email address to respond to student inquiries.
The helpline number is 01-8892199 and the email address is [email protected]. The helpline will be open Thursdays from 10 am to 5 pm.
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