Portmarnock Community School

Link-school for the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA)

Addressing some of the issues with Junior Cycle reform since May 2012

From your Primary-school

“From  2014, the new junior cycle will feature newly developed subjects and short courses, a focus on literacy, numeracy and key skills, and new approaches of assessment and reporting”.

Department of Education and Skills

...put a lot of focus internally with teachers on the eight Junior Cycle Key Skills

...developing many of these in our existing teaching

Strengths...

Centrality of Literacy and Numeracy

We have done a lot of work in PCS on developing and implementing our literacy and numeracy policies

Strengths...

First-year 2014/2015 will see every secondary-school student in the Republic of Ireland undertaking a new English Syllabus with a new form of Junior Cycle Assessment in 2017

Junior Cycle English

Set texts – can be viewed at www.juniorcycle.ie

Based on the Key Skills Oral examination at the end of Second-year Portfolio presentation at the end of Third-

year JCSA (Junior Cycle Student Award)

examination in June of Third-year Teachers CPD is ongoing

Schools have the option to offer short-courses

This year we are offering two in one of our option blocks – student must do both

1. Programming and Coding2. Sports Science

Short courses

The course aims to develop the student’s ability to formulate problems logically, to design, write and test code, to develop

games, apps, animation and websites, and through these learning activities, to learn

about computer science.

Programming and Coding

students should be able to explain the basics of computer networks

Produce four webpages using HTML and CSS Explain how search engines work Demonstrate their understanding of binary

code Describe how data is communicated on the

Internet using protocols Investigate the representation of images on

computers

Programming and Coding

Mr. McNeive

Sports Science

all of the marks awarded will be for school work the evidence of learning will be generated according

to the (NCCA) short course specification and will relate directly to the aims and learning outcomes of the short course

there may be more than one assessment component involved – a mix of process and product elements

the component/s will be marked in the school and will include internal moderation to maintain standards

the grade awarded will be included on a JCSA (Junior Cycle Student Award) in 2017

NCCA pointers

Two periods per week, each

Over three years

Certification at the end of 3rd Year

Continuous Assessment – Common level

Assessment focus in Second and Third Year

In an option block that each of the other three subjects can be taken in 4th/ 5th Year

Organisation

48 students – a “draw from the hat” if oversubscribed (Unsuccessful students will be offered their second choice)

Open to all abilities

Open to all skill-sets

Organisation