Oh No....Bill Strikes Again

road_high

Seems Uncle Bill is not too fond of Transition Year now either!



http://www.independent.ie/education/latest-news/cullen-wants-transition-doss-year-scrapped-1761437.html


Thursday June 04 2009

APPRENTICE star Bill Cullen last night branded the transition year a "disaster" which should be scrapped.

The multi-millionaire businessman dismissed it as a “doss year”. He also said it was absolute nonsense to suggest that students were getting work experience during the year.

“They’re not getting any work experience, they’re usually dossing,” he said. “They can fall into bad habits and bad company, and get into a habit of just being lazy. It’s a disaster . . . it’s not working at all in the way it was supposed to be.

“Whatever job I got when I was working during the school holidays, I did it better and quicker than anyone else: that was my focus all the time. And in that context the young people are not doing anything,” he told Sean Moncrieff on Newstalk 106- 108fm.

But the transition year – taken by 27,000 students annually – was last night strongly defended by Dr Gerry Jeffers, lecturer in Education at NUI Maynooth, who said that young people did some “serious growing up” during the year.

The year, which comes immediately after the Junior Certificate, was a bridge between school and the worlds of work and the wider community.

He described properly organised work placements as “powerful occasions of learning”. He said research had shown that students who took the year generally obtained more points in their Leaving Cert than those who did not

- John Walshe

TPD

Anyone I've known who did TY just dossed about. My school only introduced it after I'd left, the baxtards.

Dennis the Stone

Bill certainly likes talking about himself.

"When I was a lad dis n dat.."

Carlow52

Jackie must have the 'doras dunta' sign up for him to be venting his spleen like this: who gives a .... what he thinks of transo year, or on reflection anything.

The recession made them mothball the chopper:mad:

My name is URL

I done it. It is a doss year

The 2 weeks I spent on WE was on the job I already had on the weekends lol, got paid and all

Granted it did help mature me a bit though, so I wouldn't agree 100% with Bilbo as to it being a 'disaster'

SoWatchaWant

Transition is a waste of time, no question. It should be scrapped.

bleg

i did it and it was class, actually enjoyed going into school. we could learn about what we wanted and there was no pressure. my work experience helped me decide what kind of career i'd like. it also gave us time to enter loads of competitions.

out of the 20 or so of us that did it however i'd say only about 12 of us benefited from the experience.

Red_Marauder

I didn't have transition year but did a gap year, doing charity work and traveling. I think that kind of thing mights serve kids better, in that they can piss off to China and get some pent up stress off their chest after the exams before setting into college exam mode.

faceman

What exactly to kids do in transition year?

Mossy Monk

He is right. It is a waste of time.

MagicMarker

Bill Cullen is a fúcking douche.

K4t

Absolute bollocks.

From someone who has recently done TY, you get out of it what you put into it. Our school put on lost of activites/tours etc. and most people really benefited from the year. It is very important imo and you don't just doss on the work experience. Where the f**k does this fella get off. Why can't he just piss off. Why do people with lots of money or who are famous consider it their duty to comment on society/education/politics and evrything else. STFU.

ctrl-alt-delete

I had to do it in my school,

and although it might have been fun at times, id rather not have done it, i could have moved schools but that was hassle.

Other than it being a doss, i found it hard to get back into the serious schooling system when i went back into 5th year.

CrazyRabbit

faceman wrote: »

What exactly to kids do in transition year?

They 'transition' from one street corner to another.

I read a letter in the times today also suggesting that the age for sitting the LC should be higher :rolleyes::rolleyes:
TY always did seem a doss year to me though - switched schools to skip it.

BlueSpiral

I did it. It helped me grow up, and get some confidence which I was in sore need of. Best and most helpful year of my life so far. Bill is an absolute eejit. I just think they should lower the amount going in and have more detail and questions in their interviews to weed out the dossers. I got a year long job out of my first work experience and am still heavily involved with the folks I did the second work experience with. I'm still seeing the benefits.

Aidric

I would encourage all those hitting TY next year to apply to Bill directly.

My name is URL

Aidric wrote: »

I would encourage all those hitting TY next year to apply to Bill directly.

http://www.goldenapples.ie/about/index.htm

He's a director of the Youth Foundation.. lmao

You can also contact him directly through that site

yurmothrintites

Transition year can be a doss or a beneficial growing experience depending on the planning the school places on it.
I did transition year and fortunately it was excellently organised and certainly not a doss. We had organised activities and lessons as well as bonding days in September. As we had been in separate classes for three years and most students did not know others in the year so it was great to get to know everyone.
However, it seems that in most secondary schools where transition year is offered, it is of a poor standard where students are not properly organised. I think the department of education should reformulate the guidelines for transition year and implement rules and regulations for the proper organisation of the year.

Purple Gorilla

I literally just finished Transition Year and what he said is complete monkey ass poo.

Transition Year was honestly the best year I've ever spent in school. It's not a total doss but it's relaxing. It was such a relief after the JC...just to finish a day in school and not have to worry about studying or homework. It was more spent on developing social skills and business skills...

Anyone who says it is a doss either A)Never did Transition Year (fairly recently) or Didn't put anything into it.

My geography teacher said it best, you'll get as much out of Transition Year as you put in. If you doss around and don't actually take part in the activites, but instead just do nothing, you'll get bored off your face. I went to America for 3 weeks and had to do Work Experience with a doctor. In what other year could I do that? I did Work Experience with Microsoft and loved it...What other year could I do that? We put on a musical and went on a Walking Trip, Cycling Trip and a trip to European Space Agency...what other year could I do that? My friends went to Salamanca for a month to improve their Spanish and my other friends went to France for 6 weeks to improve their French. What other year could they do that?

See where I'm getting at? Plus, teachers of Mini-Company might disagree with him... There's people in my year who made €4000 off their Mini-Company (Donated it all to charity) and are now continuing the business. Did he ever hear of Blastbeat? Ever hear of the Junior Achievement Programme?
All are Entrepeneur-promoting modules in 4th year which prepare people for the world of work and they could be the very people who help this country recover- Young Entrepeneurs.

Transition Year is a truly brilliant year and if we are to lose that then we a losing something that is truly unique to our education system.

/long rant

EDIT: As was said above, in our school we couldn't doss. It operated on a credit system so you had to get at least 40 credits to pass the year and there's a maximum of 104 credits. You get a maximum of 4 credits for each class and then there's something like 8 extra credits you get for doing charity work and other stuff like that etc.

Purple Gorilla

Purple Gorilla wrote: »

I literally just finished Transition Year and what he said is complete monkey ass poo.

Transition Year was honestly the best year I've ever spent in school. It's not a total doss but it's relaxing. It was such a relief after the JC...just to finish a day in school and not have to worry about studying or homework. It was more spent on developing social skills and business skills...

Anyone who says it is a doss either A)Never did Transition Year (fairly recently) or Didn't put anything into it.

My geography teacher said it best, you'll get as much out of Transition Year as you put in. If you doss around and don't actually take part in the activites, but instead just do nothing, you'll get bored off your face. I went to America for 3 weeks and had to do Work Experience with a doctor. In what other year could I do that? I did Work Experience with Microsoft and loved it...What other year could I do that? We put on a musical and went on a Walking Trip, Cycling Trip and a trip to European Space Agency...what other year could I do that? My friends went to Salamanca for a month to improve their Spanish and my other friends went to France for 6 weeks to improve their French. What other year could they do that?

See where I'm getting at? Plus, teachers of Mini-Company might disagree with him... There's people in my year who made €4000 off their Mini-Company (Donated it all to charity) and are now continuing the business. Did he ever hear of Blastbeat? Ever hear of the Junior Achievement Programme?
All are Entrepeneur-promoting modules in 4th year which prepare people for the world of work and they could be the very people who help this country recover- Young Entrepeneurs.

Transition Year is a truly brilliant year and if we are to lose that then we a losing something that is truly unique to our education system.

/long rant

EDIT: As was said above, in our school we couldn't doss. It operated on a credit system so you had to get at least 40 credits to pass the year and there's a maximum of 104 credits. You get a maximum of 4 credits for each class and then there's something like 8 extra credits you get for doing charity work and other stuff like that etc.

Good for you ! Sounds like you really put in a lot and got a lot. You sound like a great young person.My daughter is doing Junior at the moment, and wanted to get out of transition year.She has since gotten used to the idea, and has lined up some great WE and also Community Service ( one day a week.Ill be showing her your post
Its lovely to hear a young person be so positive.

Sizzler

MagicMarker wrote: »

Bill Cullen is a fúcking douche.

+1

Bill has obviously never heard the saying "a shut mouth catches no flies".

WTF does he know about transition year and why does he feel qualified to comment on it (regardless of it being a doss year or otherwise)?

He'd be better off trying to sort out his business that appears to be going down the tubes than spouting about a generation 50 years younger than him.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/ireland/article5683880.ece

shenanigans1982

Personally I felt it was the best year of school. It's really gives classes a chance to bond and get to know each other outside of a classroom.

Also if I hadn't of done transition year I would have been 16 sitting my Leaving Cert which is too young.

Purple Gorilla

Jake1 wrote: »

Good for you ! Sounds like you really put in a lot and got a lot. You sound like a great young person.My daughter is doing Junior at the moment, and wanted to get out of transition year.She has since gotten used to the idea, and has lined up some great WE and also Community Service ( one day a week.Ill be showing her your post
Its lovely to hear a young person be so positive.

If you're on the northside of Dublin, I'd recommend the CASA Breakhouse in Malahide. I did my community service there and it was brilliant. They fed me and everything and it's flexible hours. You only do as much work as you want to

She'll honestly love it. Right from the first day! You don't do too much work, but you don't do too little. Infact in English we probably did the same amount of work we did in 1st year, it's just we didn't have homework. We still read a novel, did an essay on it, do poetry and then prepared for 5th year learning about Cultural Context.

Just tell her to make the absolute most of it! Go on every trip, do every module etc. There's some things I regret not doing
The one thing I did love about 4th year was how it brought everyone together. Before 4th year, our year was split into cliques...now, we go out with everyone. Everyone is friends with each other..I was walking around town with my friend and this girl in our year that we made friends with because of 4th year and she said it brilliantly.. "If you asked me 6 months ago if I'd be walking down Grafton Street with you 2, I'd say you're crazy"

Purple Gorilla

Btw is there any e-mail address I can contact Bill Cullen at? I'd like to give him my opinion on his opinion

994

He should get a column like T. Herman Zweibel in The Onion. "These young rap-scallions with their transition-years!"

Twee.

My school had the credit system too, so most people did take the year seriously. Had an absolute ball - learned some Japanese and Italian, how to sew, improved Irish and French, had modules on humanities and the EU, saw a heap of excellent films and so much more.
Some schools don't put a lot into it, so it will be a boring year. Mine did, and it was optional, so only folks who were interested did it. Cut out all those dossers

KeyLimePie

a repeat of what he said in RSVP magazine.

Royale with Cheese

I really really enjoyed transition year. Loved going into school, and generally just had a laugh all the time.

I agree with the douche though, it melted my brain and made me really (even moreso than before) lazy. Don't think I actually learned anything from the year or matured or anything, just had a good time. I'd definitely do it again though if I had to go back and decide.

JerryHandbag

Ah feckit I thought this thread was about Bill O' Herlihy.....okey doke, I'll leave it there so...

Davidius

shenanigans1982 wrote: »

Personally I felt it was the best year of school. It's really gives classes a chance to bond and get to know each other outside of a classroom.

I have to agree with you there. My school is relatively new (first standard LC this year) and only offered Transition Year or LCA as an option for the Junior Cert students in '06.

In '07 they began to offer the established Leaving Cert to 3rd years. I chose to not bother with TY and went straight into 5th year.

The ex-TYers were ridiculously close to each other. It was really alienating to see how well they all seemed to get on with each other. It disturbed me a bit because I didn't really know anybody in my 3rd year class.

Mark200

I have to agree that you get out of it exactly what you put in. The only people who see it as a doss year are the dossers. I loved the year. And my work experience was work experience... I spent a week and a bit in an IT Dept and did a 3 day thing in Trinity about Computer Science. I also entered a mini-company competition and helped out in the transition year play. As well as that, it gave an extra year's worth of maths, Irish and german. I also got to try out other subjects that I would never have gotten to try otherwise, and I enjoyed it.

Also we did a hike thing in Glendalough which I enjoyed..

Red_Marauder

I think one of the worst things a school can opt to do is to make that year compulsory for all students. It should only be open to those willing and able to put an effort into the year out in order that they could use it to their best advantage and self-development.

Throwing a group together where only a third of the class are enthusiastic is bound to flounder. Apathy and cynicism are really more contagious than enthusiasm.

Purple Gorilla

Purple Gorilla wrote: »

If you're on the northside of Dublin, I'd recommend the CASA Breakhouse in Malahide. I did my community service there and it was brilliant. They fed me and everything and it's flexible hours. You only do as much work as you want to

She'll honestly love it. Right from the first day! You don't do too much work, but you don't do too little. Infact in English we probably did the same amount of work we did in 1st year, it's just we didn't have homework. We still read a novel, did an essay on it, do poetry and then prepared for 5th year learning about Cultural Context.

Just tell her to make the absolute most of it! Go on every trip, do every module etc. There's some things I regret not doing
The one thing I did love about 4th year was how it brought everyone together. Before 4th year, our year was split into cliques...now, we go out with everyone. Everyone is friends with each other..I was walking around town with my friend and this girl in our year that we made friends with because of 4th year and she said it brilliantly.. "If you asked me 6 months ago if I'd be walking down Grafton Street with you 2, I'd say you're crazy"

Thats brilliant. Im thrilled you enjoyed it so much.
We are in Lucan, but shes going to be working in town, for Unicef, as part of her Community Service. Shes really looking forward to that, as she has a good social conscience.The for the WE, shes be working in a Criminal Lawyers Office, town also. Again, shes really looking forward to this, as it will be really interesting.

As for the trips and so on, yep, she'll be going on everyone of them.It will be a great way to get to know other class members a bit better.

I must say, Im almost jealous. It sounds like a lot of fun, through out the whole year.

Again, its brilliant to hear such great storys from all of you.
The future is in positive hands.:D

Chocoholic84

I did TY and loved it! It's more about personal development that educational, we got to do a lot of community work, and entered lots of competitions, like debating, environmental, etc, and we also got to stage a play which was brilliant!

Work experience wise, it showed me what I definitely DIDN'T want to do - I worked in the local nursing home for 2 weeks, I think my report card said I should be a social worker as I spent most of my time sitting chatting to patients

Kimbot

TY was class,

Done work experiene for Sony Erricsson.
Got my GAA and Soccer coaching badges.
Done some charity work with Concern.
Learned a few new subjects that I wouldn't have done only for TY.

As a parent, Id heard a lot of moaning about TY, not just from students,I know a lot of parents dont agree with it either.
Looking through all of your pou took so much good frosts, its great to see so many of yom it. Also the range of things you all get to do, is fantastic.

Thanks to you all, I am now really looking forward to seeing and hearing all my daughter gets to do next year.
Just have to get her over the junior cert now :eek:

As a parent, Id heard a lot of moaning about TY, not just from students,I know a lot of parents dont agree with it either.
Looking through all of your posts its great to see you all took so much from it.

Just have to get her over the junior cert now :eek:

IvyTheTerrible

I did transition year 14 years ago (it was only the second year in our school), and i have to say I loved it and would absolutely agree that you get out what you put in. Also I agree that it's better if it's not compulsory.

I matured, I got more confidence, and I learned so much...Spanish, how to play guitar, woodwork, crafts, accounting, loads more. Also because I had more time in the evenings I read loads and did voluntary work.

Good times!

(And it didn't effect my results later, I got the best leaving in my school).

useful_contacts

mfitzy wrote: »

Seems Uncle Bill is not too fond of Transition Year now either!



http://www.independent.ie/education/latest-news/cullen-wants-transition-doss-year-scrapped-1761437.html


Thursday June 04 2009

APPRENTICE star Bill Cullen last night branded the transition year a "disaster" which should be scrapped.

The multi-millionaire businessman dismissed it as a “doss year”. He also said it was absolute nonsense to suggest that students were getting work experience during the year.

“They’re not getting any work experience, they’re usually dossing,” he said. “They can fall into bad habits and bad company, and get into a habit of just being lazy. It’s a disaster . . . it’s not working at all in the way it was supposed to be.

“Whatever job I got when I was working during the school holidays, I did it better and quicker than anyone else: that was my focus all the time. And in that context the young people are not doing anything,” he told Sean Moncrieff on Newstalk 106- 108fm.

But the transition year – taken by 27,000 students annually – was last night strongly defended by Dr Gerry Jeffers, lecturer in Education at NUI Maynooth, who said that young people did some “serious growing up” during the year.

The year, which comes immediately after the Junior Certificate, was a bridge between school and the worlds of work and the wider community.

He described properly organised work placements as “powerful occasions of learning”. He said research had shown that students who took the year generally obtained more points in their Leaving Cert than those who did not

- John Walshe

Who cares what he thinks seriously!

useful_contacts

jonny24ie wrote: »

TY was class,

Done work experiene for Sony Erricsson.
Got my GAA and Soccer coaching badges.
Done some charity work with Concern.
Learned a few new subjects that I wouldn't have done only for TY.

Ya TY was the best thing i ever did- and its NOT a doss.

Funny how TY is supposed to be a "doss year" but leaving certs can do L.C.A AND L.C.V.P now as opposed to the real leaving cert. Now thats the real issue. Why should they pass the L.C on "Projects" when i sat 7 exams to get the same pass.

IvyTheTerrible

useful_contacts wrote: »

Ya TY was the best thing i ever did- and its NOT a doss.

Funny how TY is supposed to be a "doss year" but leaving certs can do L.C.A AND L.C.V.P now as opposed to the real leaving cert. Now thats the real issue. Why should they pass the L.C on "Projects" when i sat 7 exams to get the same pass.

But they don't get anywhere near the same points.

useful_contacts

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

But they don't get anywhere near the same points.

TBH points arent as big as they were- only 3 people from my LC year went to college and finished, the rest didnt go or dropped out.

Maybe the points matter to some people but i think its a lazy persons leaving cert. Hardly fair i was stressed outta my head doing my LC and people can do it on proojects now.

anonymous_joe

He's just trying to be an Irish Alan Sugar/Donald Trump.

He's a sap.

TY's grand, you get to do new things, and it stops the leap into the LC at an early age. I definitely wish I could've done my leaving a couple of years later. Because I majorly fcuked about in school in general, and only got into Commerce.

stovelid

In my school, it was an extremely beneficial resource in that just before the leaving cycle, it magically filtered all the nutters out of my year in one go.

kevmy

It's a waste of time for most people. Of the people I know who did it very few benefited long term from it. Most regretted doing it.

If you are under serious stress in your life do it cos it gives you a year off.
If you play a lot of sport/music/drama do it cos it gives you more free time.
If you are seriously immature do it so you can cop on.

But for the 90% of students who don't fall into those categories it's a waste. I hear some places its compulsory - what bollocks. I mean your essentially wasting people's time and trapping them in school for another year when the could spend that year after they finished school doing a gap year, travelling, working or going to college.

astrofool

I think it really depends on maturity level.

For those mature enough, it's much better to skip TY, go straight to the leaving, and then take a year off, where you have far more options (esp. travel). For some people, TY gives them the chance to mature, and it can be very beneficial.

Others just lack maturity, and will likely remain that way for the rest of their life.

As someone said above, it filters all the messers from the year at a very handy time.

Wagon

I skipped it. Meant i finished a year early and don't regret it for a second. Scrap the year and let people just finish school at 17. It's a better idea all round.

bill is still a complete wanker.

Purple Gorilla

I'd rather give people the choice to do it rather than force them to go straight into the Leaving Cert Course, right after the Junior Cert

bleg

also, students that do TY get, on average, 40 points more than people that didn't do TY