Sir, – Like so many, my concern also embraces our Leaving Certificate students at this time, who may be feeling particularly vulnerable, with the uncertainty of how their examination, and indeed, their life dreams may unfold. I know our educational and political leaders are endeavouring to work out a solution for this imponderable dilemma at this very difficult time. However, we must be really mindful that our young people are reassured of our continuing compassion and empathy at this critical juncture in their lives.
This year, our current Leaving Certificate students are missing significant milestones in their journey of transitioning from one major life stage to another. The Leaving Certificate is punctuated, during the academic year, with practical and oral exams, submission of projects and a series of rituals that beckon endings and herald beginnings. These inspire stories of support, encouragement and possibility, from teachers and parents or guardians, and we learn very valuable lessons that we are not alone, but are also carried by those around us.
I fully appreciate there is no easy solution, but I know in moments of greatest challenge, we can be at our most creative, as demonstrated so admirably in our country each day, during this pandemic. I wonder if we may need to step beyond our views and reimagine other possibilities in considering alternatives for our young people?
They deserve our unstinting support in assisting them transition into the next phase of their lives, in a manner fitting the current circumstances. We need to show our young people, as Leo Varadkar has stated, that we will do the right thing by them, as we are doing for each other right now.
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It seems it is a time for all the universities, colleges of further education, school management bodies and students (many of whom have a voting voice) to work collaboratively in exploring creative and compassionate alternatives.
Maybe the current difficulties surrounding this year’s Leaving Certificate invite us to reconsider our many constructions that we take for granted and reimagine alternative ways of becoming. – Yours, etc,
EILEEN MORRIS,
(Former school principal),
Shankill,
Dublin 18.