It’s one less thing to worry about.

Students and parents can breathe a small sigh of relief this afternoon, after Minister for Education and Skills Joe McHugh TD announced the cancellation of oral and practical performance tests of the state examinations, originally scheduled to take place from Monday, March 23rd to Friday, April 3rd, 2020.

All students who were due to take these tests will be awarded full marks for this portion of the exam.

The decision was taken in light of the closure of schools as a result of the Covid-19 virus and it will be implemented by the State Examinations Commission (SEC).

‘I hope this decision will ease some of the pressure that students are feeling’

Minister McHugh said: “This is a difficult time for all. Students are facing a challenging period out of school and our decision on this element of the exams is being taken with their best interests at heart.

“It is the fairest response we could take in the circumstances. It guarantees that no student will score less than they would have if schools had been operating as normal.

“We have seen a new emphasis on remote learning amid the uncertainty about the impact of Covid-19 and the closure of all schools. I hope this decision will ease some of the pressure that students are feeling and allow them to focus more clearly on completing project work and preparing for written exams.”

All students due to take tests in the following subjects will be given full marks for this part of the examination:

• Oral tests in Leaving Certificate Irish and the Modern Languages of French, German, Spanish, Italian, Russian and Japanese.
• Practical performance tests in Leaving Certificate Music.
• Practical performance tests in Junior Certificate Music and Home Economics.

Minister McHugh also confirmed changes to deadlines for students to complete project work and coursework in a number of subjects. Students were originally scheduled to complete these elements of the state examinations on a number of dates from Friday, March 20th to Friday, April 24th, 2020, depending on the subject.

Students will now be given until Friday, May 15th 2020 to complete this work.