“Sir, – While I have no doubt that Dr Áine Hyland is a fine and decent person and a respected educationalist, I have to take issue with her recent statements in the media that the Leaving CertIficate 2020 must go on as it is best selector for third-level entry …” (more)
[Mark Ryan, Irish Times, 8 April]
“The coronavirus pandemic is reshaping primary school education, but the impact of the changes is reinforcing social inequalities, according to an emergency report prepared for educational professionals. Not all parents have the skills, time or health to help children with distance learning and not all schools and pupils have the necessary technology to enable such learning either, the researchers say …” (more)
[Sheila Wayman, Irish Times, 6 April]
“Trinity’s TSM (Two Subject Moderatorship) office appeared to cast doubt over the possibility of foreign exchange programmes going ahead next year due to the coronavirus pandemic in an email circulated to all TSM Erasmus and Non-EU Exchange candidates in their Senior Fresh year …” (more)
[Madalyn Williams, Trinity News, 3 April]
“Along with thousands of other Leaving Cert students, I find myself in an extraordinary position. Schools are closed and look set to remain shut until the summer. Many of us do not have quiet spaces in our homes or have unreliable wifi and sub-standard laptops. Significant numbers face being unable to complete the school curriculum. What impact will all this have on students studying for exams which are supposed to be fair and equitable? …” (more)
[Lucy Donegan, Irish Times, 3 April]
“Plans are being developed to allow for the Leaving and Junior cert exams to go ahead this year. Yesterday, the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the Government wants sixth year students to be able to start college later this year …” (more)
[BreakingNews.ie, 3 April]
“More than half of the world’s learners are affected (51%, 890.5 million students) by the impact of COVID-19. With mass high school and university closures in an increasing number of countries, concerns about the implications for future international student enrolments and ultimately the impact on institutional cash flow are high on university leaders’ agendas …” (more)
[Janet Ilieva and Vincenzo Raimo, University World News, 28 March]
“The closure of schools has meant the COVID-19 outbreak has affected more than 130 countries, impacting over 80% of the world’s student population. At the higher education level, close to 60 million, that is one in four, previously enrolled students are currently not attending a higher education establishment …” (more)
[Michaela Martin and Uliana Furiv, University World News, 28 March]
“Elsewhere on the site, Canadian HE expert Alex Usher describes the big decision facing universities around the world when it comes to what to do in September. I’ve been thinking about big decisions too – but rather than those faced by universities, I’ve been trying to think about the decisions now facing students …” (more)
[Jim Dickinson, Wonkhe, 29 March]
“Residential colleges and universities are scrambling to finish the academic year online, fretting over next fall’s enrollment, and struggling with cash flow challenges. What terrifies so many higher education leaders is a scenario in which the coronavirus persists into late summer and campuses are not permitted to reopen next fall. If the Class of 2024 is forced to starts its college career from home and an online, the impact will be cataclysmic …” (more)
[Paul LeBlanc, Forbes, 29 March]
“The provost of Trinity College Dublin has said new students may end up starting college ‘slightly later’ this year on foot of disruption to education linked to the coronavirus pandemic. In a video message to students, Dr Patrick Prendergast reassured secondary students hoping to study at Trinity that it will welcome new students in the autumn …” (more)
[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 26 March]
“Trinity Provost Professor Patrick Prendergast has reassured Leaving Cert students that they will be starting college in the autumn. ‘It might be slightly later than in previous years. It might be under slightly-adjusted criteria. But we will be welcoming you’, he said. His comments reflect the ongoing uncertainty over the ongoing impact of the coronavirus crisis on the education system, with schools already not due to re-open until April 20 at the earliest …” (more)
[Katherine Donnelly, Independent, 26 March]
“The COVID-19 epidemic has struck a blow to physical mobility worldwide. Notices about institutional closures, social distancing and self-quarantining have compelled us all to part ways with our established routines, in one way or another. This could, however, be an opportunity to re-examine higher education internationalisation, including its objectives, scope, strategies and intended impact …” (more)
[Kalyani Unkule, World University News, 21 March]
“UCD President Andrew Deeks has said that the potential long-term impacts of COVID-19 for UCD could be ‘very serious’ and have a severe impact on the university’s commercial activities. The President has appealed to recruitment staff to ensure international students, who make up over 20% of UCD’s annual income, attend the university next year …” (more)
[Conor Capplis, College Tribune, 24 March]
“It’s hard to take in the full impact of the coronavirus catastrophe on Higher Education in Ireland. For fifteen years, many colleges have been pursuing an ever more intensive global agenda. My own university’s strapline is famously ‘Ireland’s Global University’ and the first iteration of our newly global strategy was equally clear: ‘Forming Global Minds’. This agenda quickly became all-invasive. Not educationally, however …” (more)
[In a Strange Land, 21 March]
‘In Britain, the United States and Australia, the coronavirus could blow huge holes in the budgets of universities that have “become addicted to one source of income …” (more)
[Benjamin Mueller, New York Times, 21 March]
“Sir, – The decision by the Department of Education to award full marks for oral and practical components of Leaving Certificate examinations is ill-judged at least and reckless at most …” (more)
[Letters, Irish Times, 21 March]
“Last year’s BT Young Scientist Adam Kelly has criticised the decision of the Minister for Education to cancel the Leaving Certificate oral and practical exams. The move will make matters even more difficult for the ‘middle to lower’ student, he told RTÉ News at One …” (more)
[Vivienne Clarke, Irish Times, 19 March]
“English language students have been told they will not be refunded money they have paid in advance for classes following the closure of all schools last week to contain the spread of the coronavirus …” (more)
[Sorcha Pollak, Irish Times, 19 March]
“The coronavirus crisis is upending higher education – as well as economies and the lives of millions of individuals around the world. Universities have been closed, with teaching cancelled or put online. Conferences have been called off. Of direct relevance to international higher education, prospective students have been unable to take examinations, and international students have been unable to travel to their campuses or to return home …” (more)
[Philip G Altbach and Hans de Wit, University World News, 14 March]
“Students who first complete further education courses are significantly more likely to graduate from third-level degree courses, new research suggests. Solas, the umbrella body for the further education sector, says the latest data shows that up to 75% of students with a foundation in a Post-Leaving Cert (PLC) course who move on to higher education complete their degree …” (more)
[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 11 March]
