SUMMARY

• Methodology: A questionnaire on investigating centre provision of Junior Certificate programmes and the results of trainees in the 1999 examinations was sent to all VEC YOUTHREACH centres and Community Training Workshops, and Senior Traveller Training Centres in October 1999. The overall response rate was 60% (85 centres). The 85 centres provided Junior Certificate results for 233 students. This response rate was very similar to the survey on the 1998 results – 86 centres providing results for 257 students.
• Nearly half of the respondents provide a Junior Certificate Programme (as opposed to facilitating young people in taking particular subjects). Just over one tenth of respondents claimed the status of recognised Junior Certificate Examination Centres. In 1999, 47% of respondents offered a Junior Certificate programme (this percentage is not directly comparable to the outcomes of the survey of 1998 results).
• Centres are most likely to provide tuition in the ‘core’ subjects and also in practically oriented subjects. The most popular subjects provided by centres as part of their programme were English (93% of centres who provided a JC programme) and Mathematics (83%), followed by Art, Craft and Design (35%). These were also the most popular three subjects provided as part of the 1998 programme. 28% of centres provide Materials Technology and 28% provide History, 23% provide Geography and 23% provide Home Economics. Disregarding those that would be considered the ‘core’ subjects in mainstream school (English, Maths, History, Geography), subject tuition provided shows a leaning toward more practical subjects. This mirrors the trend of the survey based on the 1998 results, although there has been a slight improvement in the provision of foreign languages with German, Italian and Spanish being provided in one centre each - Table 1.2.
• Nearly half of the respondents intended to provide a Junior Certificate Programme in 1999-2000. 49% of respondents said they would provide a Junior Certificate Programme in 1999-2000. 5% of those who provided a programme in 1998-1999 do not intend to repeat provision of a Junior Certificate Programme. 13% of those who did not provide a programme in 1998-1999 intend to provide subject tuition at Junior Certificate level in 1999-2000. Just over one fifth of those who were not intending to provide a programme (regardless of provision in 1998-1999) indicated that they were providing an NCVA programme – Section 1.3.
• Trainees are most likely to take examinations in the one of the ‘core’ subjects or in the more practically oriented subjects. The percentage of trainees examined in each subject reveals the leaning toward the core subjects and then towards practically oriented subjects: 78% of trainees whose results were analysed sat a Junior certificate Examination in English, 72% sat an examination in Maths. The next most popular subjects were Art, Craft and Design (26% of trainees) Home Economics (24%), and Materials Technology (23%) – Table 1.4.1. Again, the most popular subjects are similar in ranking to those of 1998.
• Papers are most likely to be taken at ordinary or foundation level (where available). In the most popular five subjects, 87% of students take the paper at either ordinary or foundation level (where available), with the exception of Materials Technology where nearly 43% of papers are taken at higher level – Table 1.4.2. Taking account of all of the papers sat by trainees in the 1999 Junior Certificate Examinations 8% are taken at higher level. Trainees are more likely then (than on average) to take practically oriented subjects such as Materials Technology, Art, Craft and Design and Home Economics at higher level (43%, 13%, 12.5% at higher level respectively).
• Many trainees achieve high grades in the subjects they take for examination. Looking at the most popular 5 subjects taken for examination by trainees, the subject with the highest percentage of A grade papers was Art, Craft and Design (18% of papers regardless of level) followed closely by English (16%),Maths (14%) and Materials Technology (13%). Home economics had the lowest percentage of A grade papers at 5%. Looking at the percentage of trainees scoring a B or higher (regardless of level of paper), almost two thirds of the trainees who took the Materials Technology papers achieved this level (62%), interesting as over 40% of M.T. papers were taken at higher level. 47% of papers in Maths were graded either B or A, as were 45% of English papers and 38% of the Art, Craft and Design and Home Economics papers were at this level. Looking at those achieving a C grade or higher, 89% of trainees who sat papers in Home Economics or in Materials technology achieved this level, as did 88% of those who sat Art, Craft and Design papers. Almost three quarters of the trainees who sat English or Maths papers achieved a grade A, B, or C (75% or 73% respectively) - figures I, II, & III
• Failure rates are extremely low among the trainee results. There was a 100% pass rate in Materials Technology with a 98 % pass rate in Art, Craft and Design. 97% of those who sat a Home Economics paper and 95% of those who sat a Maths paper achieved at least grade D. 92% of those who sat the Maths paper achieved pass level - Figure IV.