MIXED REACTION TO GOVERNMENT’S U-TURN ON SCHOOLS
AFTER a week in which Leaving Cert students were told they wouldn’t have to attend class at all this month, informed they would have to come in for three days, and then finally advised to ignore the previous instruction, one parent has explained how the pandemic has turned her daughter from one of her class’s better performers into someone who doesn’t even want to apply for college.
Zoe Thorpe Larkin is the mother of Ella Larkin, a Sixth Year student at Creagh College in Gorey, and she said that since the first lockdown her daughter’s grades have gradually begun to falter.
‘She’s gone from being a very competent student to being someone who’s failing her classes, gone from someone who would have got 70-80 per cent in her exams to 40-50 per cent or failing,’ says Zoe.
‘She’s a completely different student, and she’s losing faith in herself now. She doesn’t think she’ ll get enough points to get in anywhere but I keep telling her there’s always a way.’
Zoe attributes Ella’s troubles to the stress of attending school and the fear of bringing the virus home.
‘My dad is terminally ill so that’s a big concern for Ella. She doesn’t go out, she’s afraid to, she’s been living like a hermit for the past year,’ Zoe says. ‘She turned 16 last February and didn’t do anything for it.
‘It’s the fear of bringing the virus back, that’s a huge burden to hold at any age, to have that on your shoulders.’
That fear reached breaking point before Christmas when Ella began suffering panic attacks. And her mother says the pressure of performing well in her Leaving Cert while dealing with the worry and concerns of Covid-19 are taking their toll.
‘She’s in an awful state at the moment; started to suffer from panic attacks before Christmas,’ Zoe says. ‘She’s already lost so much of this year and fifth year was very disrupted as well.
‘She doesn’t even know what she wants anymore, she’s so upset, she thinks if there’s predicted grades she’ ll do badly, but that if there’s exams she’ ll fail them.
‘Before all this kicked off she was going to send off her CAO, but then she said she didn’t want to, that was when we found out she was failing.
‘She actually felt she shouldn’t fill them out because she wouldn’t get into any courses. But she’s now looking at doing a media and communications course.’
In the wake of Minister for Education Norma Foley’s decision to send Leaving Cert students to class three days a week, Zoe categorically stated that her daughter would not be attending school, saying she was ‘ terrified’.
That decision has now been taken out of her hands and Zoe says she is thankful the Government opted to renege on their plan.
‘I’m happy with the decision, now we can all stay at home with equal online learning till it’s safe,’ she says. ‘I don’t think the Government know what to do and they cannot and will not ever please everyone.
‘We all need to make choices for our own circumstances/families and beliefs at this stage; there is never a one size fits all in life. It would have been worse if they hadn’t made a u-turn, and at least this shows they have listened to the people.’
Remaining hopeful that this lockdown will work better than the last, Zoe says her daughter is more content now, happy in the knowledge that all students will remain at home.
‘No child should have to bear the responsibility of bringing this virus home. Ella’s happy to be equal to every other student but scared of the unknown future,’ Zoe says.
‘I’m sad for the students who are not in a place to learn online and this decision will affect them badly. The schools so far have done an amazing job adapting and I have faith this lockdown will be smoother for the students then the last.’
While some students have welcomed the closure of the schools and the return to remote learning, others would have preferred to see Minister Foley’s plan of a three-day week come to fruition.
Oisin Kavanagh, who’s a Sixth Year at Bridgetown College, is one such student. His mother, Alice, expressed the frustration and annoyance being felt by her son and many of his classmates.
‘I have four children, two in primary schooland two in secondary school. Oisin (17) is doing his Leaving Cert this year, and I have another doing their Junior Cert,’ Alice says.
‘I have been discussing the recent developments with them and they are quite indignant. They can’t quite understand why pressure seems to be such a bad word. It’s the last minute chopping and changing which frustrates them.’
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has stated his commitment to holding the state exams this year, but Alice remains doubtful and points to a discrepancy between the 2021 exams and the 2020 iterations.
‘ They called off the Leaving Cert when the cases were high last year, but they’re far higher this year and they have said they’re going ahead. It’s the inconsistency which is annoying, it’s all very reactive and there’s no planning involved.’
To counter this, she believes a new system could be implemented, one which would offer students as many options as possible.
‘My children have asked why they couldn’t be given predictive grades in May and then, if they wanted, they could sit the exams later on in the summer?
‘But my heart goes out to all the Leaving Cert students, they’re sick of this situation, there’s an overwhelming sense of frustration.’
Opposing the closure of schools, Alice says her children are ‘flexible’ and capable of adhering to guidelines with regards the spread of the virus.
‘When the stakes are raised we should have more confidence in our children to be able to navigate through the odds,’ she says. ‘I’m personally baffled as to why we always seem to opt for the stress-free route.
‘It has worrying implications for future. Can we not opt to empower them, rather than usher them away from all obstacles?’
‘At 17 or 18 years of age, Leaving Cert students should have the self-motivation and ability to rise to the occasion, and cross the line.
‘While I respect the opinions of all and admit unreservedly that every family and individual student is different, I personally do not support the cancellation of state exams.’
For now both Leaving Cert and Junior Cert are scheduled to go ahead later on in the year, but Alice fears this may not come to pass and says remote learning is a poor substitute for faceto-face with teachers and classmates.
‘Once the Department committed to delivering classes online they had to ensure it was done properly and that everyone’s circumstances were taken into consideration,’ she says.
‘But it hasn’t been looked into properly and there’s been no level of planning. The commitment to holding the exams is great so long as it comes to pass.’
IT’S THE FEAR OF BRINGING THE VIRUS BACK, THAT’S A HUGE BURDEN TO HOLD AT ANY AGE, TO HAVE THAT ON YOUR SHOULDERS