New Leaving Cert Subject Confirmed For Next Year

Students interested in current affairs and politics could be set to take a ‘politics and society’ subject for the Leaving Cert from September 2016. The new subjects ‘Politics and Society’ was launched yesterday by Minister for Education Jan O’Sullivan at a meeting in Limerick. More than 40 schools will take part in the pilot, which will see the subject taught for the first time to fifth year students – with the first points being awarded from the subject in 2018. Subjects up for discussion will include voting systems at both local and national level, social class and patriarchy, human rights, globalisation and right and left-wing political positions. Minister O’ Sullivan added that the subject will also aim to help students “develop skills of critical thinking, and engaging with how what everybody does has an effect on others”. It was previously reported that teachers with a degree or post-graduate degree in politics, sociology and anthropology will be sought for the positions. The subject will be offered at both higher and ordinary level, with both a written exam and citizen project accounting for the marks. The written exam will count for 80 per cent of the points, while the citizenship project will account for the final 20 percent of the final grade.