What happens when, after almost 100 years, a highly regarded - albeit controversial - State examination is restructured not once but twice in two years? In response to the replacement in Ireland of the traditional Leaving Certificate Examination (LCE) by a system of calculated grades (CG) in 2020, followed by a system of Accredited Grades (AC) in 2021, two national surveys of Post-Primary Teachers were conducted. The overarching aim of the research was to document teachers’ experiences of, and attitudes to, implementing two new assessment policies, both of which ushured in fundamental changes in teachers’ traditional assessment roles. As noted (Murchan, 2018), prior to Covid-19, any suggestion that teachers would become involved in school-based assessment and moderation of students’ work for high-stakes certification purposes was vehemently and steadfastly opposed by teacher unions; post-Covid, the future is anything but clear in this regard, in Ireland as in many countries internationally.

Based on analysis of quantitative and qualitative data from both surveys, this paper offers a timely opportunity for the education community to heed the voice of teachers who have experienced unprecedented assessment change over the past two years. Adopting a policy-implementation lens, the research casts teachers as street level bureaucrats (Lipsky, 1980) who engaged with the Department of Education (DE) in policy re-formation negotiated through ‘on-the-ground implementation’ (Gofen & Lotta, 2021, p. 10). Of particular interest from this perspective is the manner and extent to which teachers’ views evolved and changed as assessment policy was negotiated and re-negotiated, publicly and privately, in a manner never witnessed previously.

Comparison of teachers’ experiences of participation in the CG model of 2020 and the AG model of 2021 suggest that, while there is some appetite for assessment reform which would see teachers’ roles expand beyond that of teachers and advocates to teachers, advocates and judges, how this is likely to play out is unpredictable. Given that the traditional LCE system is being reintroduced in Ireland in May/June this year, amid vociferous calls from this year's students for continuation of the AG model, contrary to the expressed wishes of teacher unions, might be interpreted as a return to the 'tried and tested' and a missed opportunity to galvanise support to consider viable alternatives.  This apparent policy u-turn adds an important international dimension to this research for two reasons. First, the alternative assessment models of CG and AG were not devised in a vacuum; rather they were informed by international research, experience and best practice. Hence, this paper aims to provide colleagues with the opportunity to critically review elements of their own assessment policies from a different cultural perspective. Second, this research highlights the emergence internationally of student voice in the development of national assessment policy. Whether viewed as something of a Pandora’s box or a welcome and necessary addition to debate about assessment reform, this paper aims to spawn discussion of the future role students may play in assessment policy reform on the national and global stages. 

. 

Two national questionnaire surveys of Irish Post-Primary teaches were conducted in November/December 2021 (n = 713) and again in November/December 2022 (n = 220) using volunteer samples. Structured in 4 parts, the surveys contained closed Likert scale items in the main followed by a small number of open questions. In order to allow for comparison over time, only very minor changes were made to the second survey instrument. Changes made reflected the decision of the Department of Education (DoE) to offer Leaving Certificate students of 2021 the option of sitting the traditional LC and/or requesting their teachers to assess their work thereby enabling students to select their best result for each subject. Both surveys were administered via the SurveyHero web platform in the final months of 2020 and 2021 respectively and were informed by two overarching research questions: 1. How did post-primary teachers engage with the process of Calculated and/or Accredited Grades in their schools? 2. How did the process impact how they view their role as assessors? This presentation focuses on the first of these two questions only. Specifically, changes over time in teachers’ experiences of assessing and reviewing their students’ work prior to, and following, school-based alignment meetings with colleagues are examined by comparing survey data from 2020 and 2021, respectively. Significant controversy, linked with two decisions made by the DE following the submission of ranks and grades by teachers and schools for their students in 2020, led to a different model of assessment being introduced in 2021. As reported (CARPE, 2021), the first was the decision to share with students both the grades awarded to them by their teachers as well as their ranks – something viewed by teachers as a ‘betrayal of trust’. The second, influenced by controversy in the UK about the use of historical data, was the decision taken in late August 2021 to remove school historical data from the standardisation process which resulted in advantaging some cohorts of students (e.g., those in disadvantaged schools) while penalising others (such as students attending ‘grind’ school who typically achieved very highly on the State examinations). Against this backdrop, review of teachers’ views on the introduction of the revised system of assessment in 2021, based on both traditional examination and teacher-based assessments, is particularly interesting as it suggests that, contrary to the views of teacher unions, some teachers appear open to assuming alternative roles in assessment for certification.

COVID-19 has had a major impact on how high stakes assessment at the end of post-primary education is conducted in many countries around the world. For example, as in Ireland, traditional exams in the four jurisdictions of the UK (the UK, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) were abandoned in favour of systems of calculated grades involving teacher judgements. Enactment of changes deemed unimaginable before the pandemic has undoubtedly given international debate on assessment reform new impetus and purpose. However, what the assessment future may look like, and what role teachers and students may play in it, is far from clear. Some envision fresh opportunities for better alignment between assessment and curriculum by broadening the assessment base to ensure that teaching and learning are not dominated by summative assessment. Others advocate for the power of technology as a means of driving change and safeguarding against the dangers of an over-reliance on traditional terminal, written, high-stakes examinations. Yet others believe that little will change and the desire for stability will prevail with systems desperately seeking the security of the past. This paper provides an anchor and focus for discussion not just of the findings of survey-based research conducted in a peculiarly Irish policy and cultural context but of persistent assessment challenges that penetrate geographical divides. The overall ambition is to contribute to the advancement of educational practice and the re-alignment of assessment, learning and teaching based on cross-country research, inter-cultural and international exchange.

Doyle, A., Lysaght, Z. & M. O'Leary (2021). Preliminary Findings from a Survey of Post-Primary Teachers Involved in the Leaving Certificate 2020 Calculated Grades Process in Ireland. Dublin: Centre for Assessment, Research, Policy and Practice in Education (CARPE), Dublin City University. Accessed April 15, 2021. https://www.dcu.ie/sites/default/files/inline-files/calculated_grades_2020_preliminary_findings_v2_0.pdf. Doyle, A., Lysaght, Z., & M. O'Leary. (2021). High stakes assessment policy implementation in the time of COVID-19: the case of calculated grades in Ireland. Irish Educational Studies, 40(2), 385-398, DOI: 10.1080/03323315.2021.1916565. Gofen, A., & G. Lotta. (2021). Street-Level Bureaucrats at the Forefront of Pandemic Response: A Comparative Perspective. Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis: Research and Practice, 23(1), 3 - 15. doi:10.1080/13876988.2020.1861421. Lipsky, M. (1980). Street Level Bureaucracy: Dilemmas of the Individual in Public Services. Russell Sage Foundation. Retrieved April 21, 2021, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7758/9781610447713. Murchan, D. (2018). Introducing School-Based Assessment as Part of Junior Cycle Reform in Ireland: A Bridge Too far? Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 302), 97–131.