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O-Levels during the Rep of Ireland TY yr ?

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  • 03-09-2012 2:33pm
    #1
    ronankan
    Registered Users Posts: 21 ✭


    O-Levels during the Rep of Ireland TY yr ?
    When I was at school my school added a 4th year and we did junior cert 1 to 3, O levels in Yr 4 and then Leaving in yr 5-6.
    Does any schools still offer this option ?
    or how can you take them on yourself from Rep of Ireland just to have something substantive come out of the TY year at the end of it ?


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    #2
    Fad
    Registered Users Posts: 7,231 ✭✭✭Fad


    ronankan wrote: »
    O-Levels during the Rep of Ireland TY yr ?
    When I was at school my school added a 4th year and we did junior cert 1 to 3, O levels in Yr 4 and then Leaving in yr 5-6.
    Does any schools still offer this option ?
    or how can you take them on yourself from Rep of Ireland just to have something substantive come out of the TY year at the end of it ?

    OLevels haven't existed in quite some time :P

    They're GCSEs now.

    I dont think doing English state exams is really the point of TY tbh.


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    #3
    Bazinga_N
    Registered Users Posts: 3,232 ✭✭✭Bazinga_N


    ronankan wrote: »
    O-Levels during the Rep of Ireland TY yr ?
    When I was at school my school added a 4th year and we did junior cert 1 to 3, O levels in Yr 4 and then Leaving in yr 5-6.
    Does any schools still offer this option ?
    or how can you take them on yourself from Rep of Ireland just to have something substantive come out of the TY year at the end of it ?
    Why bother doing GCSE's if you have a Junior Cert under your belt? :confused: I can understand maybe doing A-Levels or International Bacculeurete, stuff that may actually get you better off for college!


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    #4
    jrmb
    Registered Users Posts: 697 ✭✭✭jrmb


    My mum did O-Levels in her fourth year so it's not unheard of. You can do them through correspondence if nothing else but you're best off covering the course with a teacher, which may be difficult if your school doesn't support the idea.

    Some private companies offer A levels as an alternative to repeating the leaving cert or doing a PLC but technically you need both GCSEs (O levels) for your GCEs (A levels) to be totally valid.

    GCSEs probably a good successor to the Junior Cert to keep you disciplined and focussed during transition year, which is something I definitely lacked.

    Unlike the Irish SEC, there are various exam boards in the UK, both public and private. At the end of the day, every GCSE or A level carries equal weight. However, you exam you sit needs to follow the specific syllabus you've studied. AQA (a popular exam board) requires exams to be taken within the UK. AQA also has more than one English Language syllabus for A levels.

    Friends of mine in the UK have needed to use multiple exam numbers as not all of their subjects were regulated by the same body.

    Finding a college willing to accept independents, affiliated with the correct exam board AND already examining the relevant syllabus can be a chore. You really need to do your research before going into something like this.

    Achieving other "non-academic" qualifications may be a better way to use transition year. Safe pass (for construction sites), first aid, ECDL (office skills) and language certificates may prove more useful than O levels, as well as being more enjoyable and bulking up your CV.


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    #5
    jrmb
    Registered Users Posts: 697 ✭✭✭jrmb


    Bazinga_N wrote: »
    Why bother doing GCSE's if you have a Junior Cert under your belt? :confused: I can understand maybe doing A-Levels or International Bacculeurete, stuff that may actually get you better off for college!

    GCSEs and GCEs complement each other. You can run into difficulties securing college places if you don't have both.


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    #6
    ronankan
    Registered Users Posts: 21 ✭ronankan


    Thanks for the informative replies.
    TY IMO is a complete waste as formulated now ,its the dying breaths of the Celtic Tiger ,in my daughters school they spend the entire year organising a talent show for the first years and school discos under the auspices of learning how to orgainse a" piss up in a brewery"
    I think it would be beneficial for her to do something more harmonious with the goal of getting a good leaving.
    Plus if She were to go to college in the North or the UK a previous english accreditation might do her no harm
    that is why i am interested.
    PS since I broached this subject I note the UK govt is talking about getting rid od the GCSE`s and replacing it again.


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