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Errors found in Leaving Cert calculated Grades
Posted by SchoolDays Newshound on 30/09/2020.
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Tags: Parenting Teachers
Updated 6pm Sat 3rd Oct 2020
The student Calculated Grades portal will open for students this evening at 6pm (sat 3rd Oct) where they can see if their grade is changing to a higher grade or not - and they will be able see their improved grade immediately.
Breaking news this lunchtime - the Taoiseach has reported in the Dáil that the Department of Education has found two errors in the Leaving Certificate calculated grades system. He stated that the issues regarding the results were "technical" and related to "coding" .
Updated 4.30pm 30th Sept with Statement from Department of Education
The Department of Education and Skills has found two errors in the Leaving Certificate 2020 Calculated Grades process which mean that incorrect grades were issued to some students when they received their results on 7 September.
The errors are being rectified and the process is being re-checked with a series of independent checks now underway.
The Department’s checks have indicated that this will impact on some of the Calculated Grades results that have already issued and some students will be receiving a higher Calculated Grade in one or more subjects than the grades they received on 7 September.
The precise number of students who will receive higher grades will not be available until the process is completed, but it is likely to be in the region of 6,500.
No student will receive a reduced grade in any subject as a result of this process.
The checks also indicate that the majority of the students who will be receiving an improved grade will receive an upgrade in one subject only, with a smaller number of students receiving an upgrade in more than one subject.
The Department of Education and Skills will contact students who will be receiving the improved grades as soon as all the checks are completed.
When the revised grades are issued the CAO and the Higher Education Institutions will establish which students receiving corrected results would have been eligible for a higher preference offer in previous rounds of the CAO process.
The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research Innovation and Skills will work with the CAO and the Higher Education Institutions to determine how those students who receive upgraded results can be facilitated to commence the course that they would, otherwise have been offered in an earlier CAO round.
Minister Foley said:
“I want to say how sorry I am that this has happened. My immediate priority is to fix the errors and their consequences so that students get their correct grades. That is happening right now and the next steps will follow quickly. On my instruction, the Department of Education and Skills has commissioned independent international experts to examine aspects of the Calculated Grades System to provide further reassurances to me and to students. I will provide full detail on the errors, how they are being addressed and the grade upgrades as soon as I can.”
Information on what happened
Two errors have been discovered in the same part of the coding used to implement the standardisation process.
The first error was in a single line of code programmed by the Department’s external contractor Polymetrika International Inc.
The error affected the way in which candidates’ Junior Cycle results were included in the standardisation process.
It was intended that the students’ aggregate class level Junior Cycle results in Irish, English and Maths would be included in the data used by the national standardisation process, together with their best two other subjects. The error had the effect that the students’ results in Irish, English and Maths were put together with their weakest two other subjects in the standardisation process.
The effect of this error has been that, in some subjects, some candidates received Calculated Grades that were lower than they should have been and some received grades that were higher.
Polymetrika discovered the error and informed the Department about it immediately. They have since corrected the piece of code.
The Department of Education and Skills found the second error while performing checks related to rectifying the first error. This error was contained in the same section of the code programmed by the Department’s external contractor Polymetrika.
The second error, which also related to the way in which candidates’ Junior Cycle results were included in the national standardisation process, was that the results of the Junior Cycle subject Civic, Social and Political Education (CSPE) were included in the data being used by the model.
The Department of Education and Skills’ checks found that the subject’s results had been included in error. It was incorrect, as in line with the design of the Calculated Grades process, this subject should not have been included in the data used by the model.
How these are being addressed
The coding errors have been corrected.
The Department has carried out a series of further checks and has identified no further errors in the coding. It has checked that the coding correctly implements all decisions of the National Standardisation Group about how data were to be combined and used in the standardisation process.
As a further reassurance, the Department has contracted ETS Educational Testing Service, the world-leading US-based non-profit organisation which specialises in educational measurement, to review essential aspects of the coding.
The results data have now been re-run through the corrected model. The review of relevant aspects of the code by ETS is expected to take a number of days. Once this is completed, the Department will have full information on which students will benefit from the improved grades and the specific subjects involved for each student.
The Department will then contact all students, advising whether they will receive a higher grade or grades, or that they are not impacted.
The Department will send a corrected file of student results to the CAO so that the CAO can work with higher education institutions to determine if a student is due a new offer and to do everything possible to facilitate their admission.
Any student who would have been entitled to a different offer in previous CAO rounds if they received the correct grade on 7 September will receive this offer or a deferred offer as soon as practicable after the updating of results.
This is in line with the practice that occurs in the appeals process every year.
When the results are published on the portal detailed information on this process will be available for students on gov.ie/LeavingCertificate.
The Department of Education and Skills has put in place a dedicated helpline and email address to answer queries from students. The helpline number is 01 8892199 and the email address is LC2020@education.gov.ie . The helpline will be open today from 4-7pm and tomorrow from 10am-5pm.
Source of Statement
SchoolDays
(30/09/2020 17:12)
ISSU Statement : 2020 Leaving Certificate Calculated Grading Errors
The Irish Second-Level Students’ Union (ISSU) expresses its disappointment at the unexpected announcement of the serious errors in the Leaving Certificate 2020 Calculated Grading Process. The ISSU is very concerned about the undue stress and anxiety this will undoubtedly cause students,however, we welcome the fact that these errors have been found and that the Department of Education and Skills’ have now committed to rectify this immediately. Our focus is on supporting the students and engaging in communications with the Department to mitigate the drastic impacts these errors will have - we want to see this resolved.
Following this announcement, the ISSU is calling on the Department and Minister for Education and Skills to ensure that students are communicated with immediately and given the necessary information and support. Clear timelines surrounding the issuing of new grades and updated CAO offers should be established as soon as possible to minimise this additional stress and uncertainty. Students will all receive a text informing them of the errors and if their grades have been affected.
The ISSU feels very strongly that students who have been affected by these errors, which may result in a change in their grades and subsequently the points received, should be given the opportunity to enter any new course offer in this academic year. Additional places should be allocated where necessary to allow for this. This is vital to assure the Leaving Certificate students of 2021 that they will not be disadvantaged further by reducing places available in courses in September 2021.Students who may now be offered a different course through the CAO must be afforded the same transitional support from higher education institutions as current first years have received. CAO applicants who received no course offers in the initial rounds but who may now be entitled to a place in higher education must be ensured that their course choice list is accurate on the system and offered a place on the course they should be rightfully awarded. Furthermore, the deadline of October 2nd for registering to sit the Leaving Certificate Examinations 2020 is not substantial enough to allow students to consider their options having not received clarification on these errors or appeal results.
The ISSU has particular concerns about the financial situation students may now potentially face as a result of a change in their position in higher education. Urgent clarity is needed surrounding SUSI grant holders who may now be offered a change in their course of study after already receiving a college place and processing fees. Financial assistance will be required for students who missed out on a place in college initially and will now potentially be entering college. The ISSU also believes that students who have paid deposits / installments for accommodation places which are no longer needed should be offered full reimbursements in the interest of fairness.
ISSU President Reuban Murray Commented; “This is going to have a very real and serious impact for a lot of students, we need to ensure all education stakeholders work together to make sure that the financial and mental impacts of these errors are mitigated and addressed because it wasn't the students fault that this happened. We welcome the fact that these errors have been found - but now we need to address the impacts of them.”
SchoolDays
(30/09/2020 17:13)
Leaving Cert grades errors ‘deeply disappointing’ – ASTI President
The President of the ASTI, Ann Piggott, has said teachers are shocked and disappointed by the news that two errors in the Leaving Cert 2020 Calculated Grades Process have been identified.
“Today’s announcement is deeply disappointing. Teachers took part in the Calculated Grades Process in good faith and we were assured that the Process was robust and fair for students. Teachers I have spoken to are very concerned about the impact of today’s announcement on those students affected, as well as the entire class of 2020 who have endured so much stress and uncertainty this year,” said Ms Piggott.
“While the discovery of errors is extremely upsetting for students and teachers, there is some comfort in the news that some students will receive their proper elevated grades and that no student will be downgraded.
“It is essential that students affected by the errors can access the courses they are eligible for without delay. In addition, the Department of Education and Skills must complete a thorough and full investigation of this matter immediately.”