The Commission on the Points System was set up by Minister for Education, Micheál Martin, in October 1997. Its brief was to review the system of selection and entry to higher education in this country. It sat for two years and published its final report in December 1999. During that period, it met thirty two times, published a Consultative Document and four Research Papers, and hosted a series of public meetings around the country.
The final report of the Commission emphasises the importance of considering third level education in the context of lifelong learning. When the Points System was first introduced almost a quarter of a century ago, the third level sector was considerably more limited in size and scope than it is today and third level education was seen largely as the preserve of school leavers. The emphasis has shifted in recent years to the concept of lifelong learning which will require the provision of learning opportunities over the entire life-span. This will have to lead to more flexible forms of educational provision to meet a diverse range of needs of learners of all ages and social groups and will require more flexible routes of access and progression throughout the system.
The report points out that the rhetoric of lifelong learning has yet to be translated into practice and that this will be a major issue for third level institutions in the coming decades. At present, only about 5% of those entering higher education in this country are mature students (i.e 23 years of age and over) whereas in many OECD countries, such students account for almost 40% of third level intake. The Commission recommends that by the year 2005, each third level institution in this country should set aside a quota of at least 15% of places for students entering at age 23 or above.
Support for Existing Third Level Selection System
In relation to the selection of school leavers, the Commission found during the course of its consultations, that there is a great deal of support for and acceptance of the existing selection system. Transparency, impartiality and efficiency were
highlighted as significant strengths of the system and were seen as the foundations of the system’s credibility. The Commission notes that the existing Points system is accepted by the public and that a number of submissions cautioned against radical change. Although some misgivings about the system were expressed during the consultative process, the lack of an alternative mechanism, which could command credibility, was cited in support of retaining the present approach. It was argued that alternatives had been criticised as potentially biased, unreliable, inefficient or unfair.
Students from Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Backgrounds
However, it was also argued that the existing system reinforces and accentuates inequality by contributing to an academic bias in second level education. It was noted that socially disadvantaged students are, for various reasons, less able to cope with the demands of the existing system. Low participation rates in third level education among this group can be perpetuated by the use of a selection system which, in treating all students in precisely the same way, fails to take account of the less favourable conditions experienced by some. In this regard the Commission noted that whereas 16% of the population generally belongs to the lower socio-economic groups, it is estimated that less than 2% of third level students are from disadvantaged backgrounds. The Commission recommends that the quota for disadvantaged students in third level education should be increased to 5% of the intake into third level education. This quota should apply to all courses. The longer term aspiration should be to increase the percentage of disadvantaged young people in third level education so that it would reflect more accurately their proportion in the population as a whole.
Supply of and Demand for Third Level Places &endash; Healthcare Courses
While noting that the number of third level places has increased significantly in the last two decades, the Commission also notes the continuing mismatch between the supply of and demand for places. In spite of the significant decrease in the number of births in Ireland during the past twenty years and the implications that this is likely to have for demand for third level places among school leavers during the next decade, it accepted that the pressure for places for some courses will continue. Since this pressure is largely in the healthcare area where almost 20% of applicants apply for only 2% of the total places in the system, the Commission paid particular attention to this area in its report.
Medicine is one of a small number of courses on which there is a predetermined limit on the number of places which are funded by the government. In the case of Medicine the total number of places was set at 305 almost twenty years ago. Some of these places are filled today by students from other EU countries. It may well be that consideration should be given to increasing the number of places available for Medicine.
In its submission to the Commission, the Higher Education Authority supported a proposal, made by Dr. Martin Newell, that consideration be given to introducing a preliminary third level course in Life Sciences or Healthcare Sciences which would have to be taken by all students who might be interested in proceeding to study Medicine. It would be envisaged that such a course could be provided in most universities and Institutes of Technology and graduates of this course would compete for places in Medicine through a National Healthcare Admission Test. The Commission supported this suggestion and recommended that the key bodies and institutions involved in policy-making on healthcare training, e.g. the Medical Council, the Universities, the Higher Education Authority and the Department of Health and Children, should set up a committee to explore the issue further.
Entry to Third Level Education for School Leavers
The Commission was of the view that a more flexible third level system with different routes of access and progression, as well as the postponement of entry to professional healthcare courses, would be likely to reduce the pressure and stress on school leavers. However, having said that, the Commission recognised that there will continue to be a need for a selection system for third level entry for school leavers.
It was generally accepted that whatever selection system is used for entry to third level, this system should select students who have a high probability of benefiting from third level education. In this regard, research internationally and in this country in the past two decades, indicates that performance throughout a student’s second level schooling is the most reliable predictor of subsequent academic success. It is a more reliable predictor than ability / aptitude tests or personality tests or interviews or other forms of selection. While recognising the limitations of the Leaving Certificate as it currently operates, the Commission supports its continued use as the method of third level selection for school leavers.
The Commission strongly supports the integrity and independence of the second-level system and agrees that second-level education should provide a broad and balanced curriculum which should enable young people to benefit from a wide range of educational experiences. In this regard, the Commission recommends that the Leaving Certificate be further developed so as to recognise a broader range of skills, intelligences and achievements than is currently the case.
A number of other issues related to third level selection and entry were considered by the Commission in its report. These included
Copies of the Final Report of the Commission (as well as the Consultative Document and the Research Papers) can be accessed on the Points Commission’s Website (www.irlgov.ie/educ/comm.htm) or they can be purchased from Government Publications. The final report costs £5.
Aine Hyland is Professor of Education at NUI Cork and Chairperson of the Points Commission