Correcting State Exams

khan86

Hi,

Just wondering if anyone has heard anything from the SEC about correcting exams. I'm new to it this year, just finishing up the PGDE and have applied to correct Junior Cert CSPE. I received a letter from them about 8 weeks ago saying I was on the reserve panel but not to contact them until the end of May. Would anyone know what my chances are of getting offered a place as at this stage I am getting a bit anxious about finding summer work and will need to start applying for jobs soon if I'm not going to get it.

I didn't apply for a superintendent position but wish I had now. Do they take late applications for replacing people who drop out at the last minute or ring in sick on the day of an exam?

Also, would anyone be able to give me any information on being a reader or a scribe for the exams?

Thanks in advance.

rodgered

In the exact same position as you except I have a readers job at my school. Applied for correcting exams and got the same letter as you but I'm feeling pretty impatient and would like to know what the story is whether I will be correcting for the summer or not!

rainbowtrout

Well if you're on reserve you won't be called up until someone drops out. The first time I got correcting I was on reserve for JC Science. The conference was on a Monday and I got a call on a Friday evening asking me if I could be at the conference on the Monday.

A lot of shuffling will probably take place over the next few weeks. Teachers will drop out of correcting for a variety of reasons. If they are dropping out of LC subjects, people tend to get 'promoted'. Over the years I've from Ordinary Level JC, to Ordinary Level LC, to Higher Level LC. So it depends on where the gaps are. Those who have experience correcting JC will be moved to LC if they are needed and are willing to do it. The vacancies at JC are then filled.

That's not an official line by the way, just how I've seen things operating in the main over the last 10 years correcting. CSPE seems to be bottom of their list as other subjects seem to get priority in terms of getting in teachers qualified in the subject to correct. One of my friends corrects CSPE and she said there is a huge turnover in correctors for the subject every year. Lots of new faces who have been called from reserve so you may be in with a chance.

Reader and scribe positions are not adverstised publicly. The principal of the school usually finds someone suitable (usually on staff) that can do it.

MRya

Does anyone have an idea of when the CSPE conference would be? or when do we find out the date of the conference?

rainbowtrout

Conferences take place from mid June to the first week of July. I think CSPE is on towards the end of June start of July.

AD61

Does anybody know if undergraduate students are ever accepted for correcting?

spurious

AD61 wrote: »

Does anybody know if undergraduate students are ever accepted for correcting?

They certainly have been in the past.

khan86

I got a call this evening offering me a place. They sent me a letter about it awhile back but I didn't receive it so they rang to see if I was still interested. The CSPE conference is on the 5th/6th July in Athlone Institute of Technology.

On a side note, if anyone knows of extra readers needed in their schools during their exams in the Dublin area could you pm me please as I would be interested in doing it. I know the places have mostly been filled already but just on the off chance that someone dropped out I'd like to put my name out there.

aloofasc

They told you already when the conference was? im still waiting to hear about the Junior Cert Geog correcting, i know i have my place but havent hear anything in ages. Same with supervising, still havent a clue of the school im going, DoE so slow to pass out info!!!

khan86

Well the person I was speaking to on the phone just told me the date and venue as they had just been confirmed this evening so I think I got an exclusive

I'm sure they are in the process of sending out all the relevant literature about this at the minute so you should hear something soon.

I wish I was supervising too, after the expense of the Hdip this year I would be glad of the money but I didn't apply as I heard you need to have a good few years teaching experience under your belt to qualify to do it. I'm hoping I might get doing reader by chance instead.

chunli_boom

I wasnt aware that N.Q.Ts could correct exams. I wish some one in college had informed me of this!For future reference, where do you apply to correct exams and where do you apply to supervise exams/be a reader? Thanks

spurious

Not all subjects will need to use NQTs as they will have enough correctors to cover what they need.

For correcting and supervising you apply to the SEC in Athlone. Application forms are available in schools or from their site and usually due in by a date in November from what I remember.

Readers are usually organised within the schools as the children have to be comfortable with their reader, so it is usually a person known to them, though not a teacher of theirs.

Lcarr

I got the same letter saying that I was on the reserve list to correct JC Business Studies. Does anybody know when the conference date is for Business Studies? I am also supervising the exams in June. Does anybody know if there is a conference or anything for supervising? First time doing all this so I am quite confused...

FORD 4000

i may have a postion as a examination aid, just wondering what rate of pay is for it? also whats the pay for a scribe/reader for a special centre?

aloofasc

Hi, theres no conference for correcting but you get a dvd on how to do it, its pretty straight forward!

spurious

aloofasc wrote: »

Hi, theres no conference for correcting but you get a dvd on how to do it, its pretty straight forward!

Which subject are you referring to?

loveroflight

I think you mean theres no conference for supervising, theres a DVD which explains all

aloofasc

Yeah sorry the dvd is for supervising the exams!

Lcarr

I heard that there was no conference for supervising - we get a dvd for that but apparently there is a conference for each of the subjects being corrected and just unsure of when the Business Studies one is... Has anybody heard?