Exam time

Exam results must be kept in perspective

Áine Ryan

FOR COUNTY MAYO’S 1,673 Leaving Cert students tomorrow (Wednesday) is undoubtedly one of the most important days in their lives. Whether it brings ecstatic whoops of joy or numbed whimpers of disappointment, this day has been marked in their calendars since they started secondary school education around six years ago.
The huge hype and pressure, however, to perform well and achieve the maximum number of points in a system that is ranked high, as well as demanding, by European educational standards, must be greeted with a philosophical attitude and ‘a grain of salt’, according to Westport’s Sacred Heart School Principal, Ms Mary Ryan.
She is emphatic that since there is enough pressure on the students already, ‘the media hype and the results themselves should be played down’.   
“It is important that parents ensure to keep the lines of communication open with their children, and to be there for them. Naturally, there will be a lot of different emotions, but the bottom line is  the results can’t be changed,” said Ms Ryan.
She told The Mayo News that she was pleased at how responsibly the pupils at her school responded to their results and acted during the follow-up celebrations.
“Our experience at the Sacred Heart School is that the girls act very responsibly. After all, they are young adults. I think there is far too much hype about the small minority who don’t act properly,” she said. 
However, Garda Chief Supt Tony McNamara has made a strong plea for parents to be extra vigilant of their celebrating children, many of whom, he emphasised, will not yet have reached the legal age for the consumption of alcohol.
“Of course, we don’t want to be kill-joys but there are dangers out there, mainly the abuse of alcohol and drugs. We are quite anxious that parents would warn their teenage children of the dangers of ecstasy, in particular,” said Chief Supt McNamara. He told The Mayo News that extra gardaí will be on duty in towns and villages tomorrow night, where there are organised events. 
Chief Supt McNamara has also called on parents to supervise their children, and to even bring them to events and collect them where possible or appropriate.
Meanwhile the Samaritans has offered ‘confidential support’ for students receiving their results tomorrow. The ‘emotional support charity’ is available for both students and concerned parents 24 hours a day.
“When young people have been told for years that good exam results are the ticket to the rest of their life, it is no wonder they feel stressed about their results. Exam results can feel like a measure of people’s intelligence, sometimes even of their value as a person, rather than what they should be, namely a measure of knowledge and skills on a particular subject matter,” said spokeswoman, Ms Suzanne Costelloe.

> For further information on the Samaritans visit www.samaritans.org/talk/exams/results.shtm or email: jo@samaritans.org, or phone 1850 60 90 90.
> Access to Leaving Cert results (from 12pm, Wednesday, August 15) is available on www.examinations.ie or by phoning 1530 719 290. Pin and Examination Numbers are necessary.