ESRI Conference to Examine Student Experience of Transitioning from Second-Level

The conference builds upon the work of the Leaving School in Ireland study, which was the first of its kind to link experiences in second-level education with later outcomes.

The 'Leaving School in Ireland' conference, which is being opened by Minister of State Damien English TD, builds upon the findings of the recently published Leaving School in Ireland study, which followed the pathways of over 750 students as they transitioned from second-level school into the next phase of their lives. Among the topics to be addressed are young people’s post-school decision-making, their experience of the transition to further and higher education and labour market integration. Introducing the Minister for State at the Conference, the Director of the ESRI, Professor Frances Ruane said:  “The longitudinal study of children in post-primary education is a flagship project at the Institute. It is the first such longitudinal study in Ireland and its findings, based on the experiences of children in each year in post primary education, provide robust evidence of the factors that impact on their lives at each stage of second-level education. The results presented at this conference explore those experiences as the young people move out of second-level education  into further or higher education or into employment.” Opening the event, Minister English said:

“Thank you for your invitation to officially open today’s conference. I’m particularly delighted to see that the area of further education is being discussed, as well as higher education. The end of second-level education should be an exciting time for students. It should not be a major stressor in their lives. I am confident that this conference, where we will hear from such a wide variety of speakers, will help us as policymakers to ensure that this is a reality for all students.”

Notes for Editors 1. Leaving School in Ireland, A Study of Post-School Transitions,  by Selina McCoy, Emer Smyth, Dorothy Watson and Merike Darmody was published on the 12  August 2014. The conference today aims to discuss the findings of this study with key practitioners and policymakers. The study was funded by the provision of grants from 10 organisations, namely the Higher Education Authority; the Department of Education and Skills; the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment; the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals; the National Qualifications Authority of Ireland; the Further Education and Training Awards Council; the Higher Education and Training Awards Council; the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland; the Teachers’ Union of Ireland and the National Council for Special Education. Key findings from the Leaving School in Ireland study included: Schools make a difference

• School experiences made a significant difference to the pathways young people took on leaving school. Young people who had more positive interactions with their teachers were more likely to stay on in education after leaving school.
• The social mix of the school had a particularly strong influence. Young people who attended socially-mixed schools and middle-class schools, were more likely than those from working-class schools to go on to some form of post-school education and training, all else being equal.

Realising aspirations

• Higher education was the dominant pathway for these young people – some 61 per cent of them entered higher education. The research found that those who took Post-Leaving Certificate (PLC) courses often saw this as a compromise rather than a specific goal, especially where they did not go on to further study on completion.
• A significant proportion of young people did not achieve their goals and almost half expressed regrets about the pathway they had taken. Their regrets reflected their difficulties in accessing employment during the recession, not having the ‘points’ to obtain their preferred course, and courses not being what they expected.

The transition to further and higher education

• A large majority (over four-fifths) of school leavers reported significant differences in teaching and learning between second-level education and further/higher education. They highlighted particular difficulties in relation to the standard expected of them, the difficulty of the course and managing their workload. The need to engage in self-directed learning in further/higher education was contrasted with the more directive approach adopted in school.
• Support structures within further and higher education institutions were found to play an important role in supporting the transition to further study.

Young people’s well-being

• Young people were largely positive about many aspects of their lives, including friendships, accommodation, their course/job, and workload. However, a significant minority (around one in six) reported high stress levels, with higher stress levels among those who were unemployed and those in higher education preparing for their final exams.