is it just me?

Naikon

http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=9&si=1538225&issue_id=13518

This is a old link but:


Does anyone agree or disagree with this statment, and do you have an opinion relating to the issue?

Personally i dont think there is much truth in the article, considering i know many people who got a 1.1 degree but never got more than 480 points in the LC.
I think the LC is too narrow and doesent prepare you as well as other systems due to the lack of direction, mainly because you cant really specialise your subjects in a manner that provides an advantage at third level apart from maths, applied maths ect.
One screw up on the day can skew your points accumilation to the point where
it can affect your options.
to cut it short
"your level of degree is directly proportional to your points score"
I cant see much truth in that statement.
It doesent seem to take other variables into account like stress, or lack of maturity at that stage.
Any opinions?

I'm quite surprised that Engineering & IT wasn't touched.

The study looked at the performance of graduates in arts, commerce, science and law in UCD, NUI Galway, NUI Maynooth and UCC.

Naikon

Probably due to their unpopularity.
I havent met many people who want to take the IT path.
Just myself:(
I reckon specific entry requirements are more usefull in predicting how well someone would do as opposed to x amount of points.
(medicine and very high points courses are excluded from this assumption however)

spurious

I haven't seen any direct conclusive connection between points in the Leaving and success at college. College requires independent learning. The Leaving Cert in its present form does nothing to encourage this.

When I went to college, the top student in our group was a girl who had just scraped in. Once she found herself in an area she had a passion for, she excelled.

Huggles

The Point system is a joke of the highest order.

I got roughly 300 points on my LC and got into a 410 course in DCU on interview. I then went on to get a 1.1. I am now out of college three years working in the field and my comapny is a huge success.

Our wonderful government needs to go back to the drawing board on this one.

eamoss

For ppl who dont have an accont on unison.ie

Points are excellent guide to third level success

ADVERTISEMENT






John Walshe

Education Editor

THE controversial points system has been confirmed as a remarkably reliable guide to students' performance in university.

A new study shows a very definite link between high points in the Leaving Cert and honours degrees at university.

Details are disclosed as Leaving Cert students prepare to fill in their CAO forms this month.

The exam has been criticised for measuring too narrow a range of students' abilities.

But the study of almost 5,000 graduates shows clearly that the more points you get the more likely you are to leave university with a first-class honours degree.

Some 60pc of those who entered university with 555 points or more graduated with a first-class honours degree.

By contrast only about 6pc of those with 405 or fewer points obtained a first-class honours degree.

If they don't get a first class degree the high pointers are more than likely to get a 2.1 degree (second-class honours, grade one) rather than a third-class or pass degree.

Overall, the study shows that nine out of 10 students with 505 or more points are likely to get a first or a 2.1.

At the other end of the scale, a third of those with fewer that 405 points will get an honours degree, more than likely a 2.1 rather than a first.

National University of Ireland Chancellor and former taoiseach, Dr Garret Fitzgerald, said the study of nearly 5,000 graduates showed there was a clear overall correlation between Leaving Cert points and performance at graduation.

"Despite criticism of the Leaving Certificate examination and the method by which some of its subjects are marked, these new figures seem broadly to validate that examination as a measure of students' intellectual capacity and as a predictor of university performance," he said.

The study looked at the performance of graduates in arts, commerce, science and law in UCD, NUI Galway, NUI Maynooth and UCC.

Education Minister Mary Hanafin said the fact that high Leaving Cert performers turned out to be high performers on degree programmes should not come as a great surprise.

Stress

"The CAO points system is widely accepted as a fair, efficient and transparent mechanism for allocating third level places.

"The Leaving Certificate examination itself is a good indicator of overall academic ability and those that succeed on it are, in general, likely to adapt well to the academic demands of undergraduate programmes."

However, she said she still intended to press ahead with moves to reduce the stress on students by introducing a second examination component in each subject.

The Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland welcomed the study with general secretary John White saying that teachers usually knew quickly which students were likely to perform well in their Leaving Cert.

* On Monday the Irish Independent will publish a 12-page 'Going to College' supplement that will help students find their way through the maze of CAO courses and choices.

Huggles

Load of balls

c m

you cant disagree with a statistic

nedward

You know, 69.25% of all statistics are wrong.

Naikon

c m wrote:

you cant disagree with a statistic

Do i detect a hint of sarcasm?:D

westhammer

Hmm, i can see it being pretty possible but at the end of the day if you love your course you're gonna excell regardless. Its gonna be impossible to get a first class in medicine

Naikon

I could understand if the material was related, it would be helpfull but why would someone be less able to get a good degree simply because they dont get high points.
you have to have the "right mindset" for a course.
High points doesent mean instant success in a course.
Entry requirments are a better indicator than x amounts of points.
I feel the rote learning is painfull where most questions are simply taken from a book and reproduced on paper, word for word.
Where does independant thought come into the equation like the Gooner has suggested?
The LC doesent measure development of a person throughout the course.

R0C0

Statistics are like a lamp post to a drunk... more for leaning on than illumination!!

IMO Leaving Cert subjects should be weighted points-wise towards the 3rd level course your going for!

c m

i think its true. people who work hard get high points and for the most part -obviously there are exceptions- this work ethic is sustained through college life hense the higher grades