Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 10 February 2026
626. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she will extend the award of bonus marks to include continuous assessment components completed through Irish for students sitting the Leaving Certificate in 2026, in order to ensure parity with the arrangements that will apply from 2027 for both written examinations and continuous assessment (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10187/26]
View answerAs the Deputy will know, there is an existing and longstanding policy in place for awarding bonus marks for written examinations in the Leaving Certificate examinations completed through the medium of Irish.
The existing Irish bonus marks policy encompasses written examinations only, as set out under Rule 29 of the ‘Rules and Programmes for Secondary Schools 2004/2005’, This provision continues to apply for those students who will sit their written examinations this year, in 2026.
It should also be noted that the provision of Irish bonus marks relates to examinations undertaken by all Leaving Certificate examination candidates where they undertake their examination through Irish and not just those from Irish language-medium schools.
The application of bonus marks is being extended to include those components of the State examinations which are coursework and completed through Irish, where appropriate. This extension of bonus marks to coursework at this point arises primarily given the application of revised assessment arrangements under the Senior Cycle Redevelopment programme whereby all new and revised Leaving Certificate Established subject specifications will incorporate components that are not a traditional written examination, and worth at least 40% of the total available marks.
The first Tranche of new and redeveloped subjects are currently being studied by fifth years, who will sit their Leaving Certificate examinations in 2027.
The extension of the Irish bonus marks to coursework will be applied to all subjects examined in 2027, not just those that have been redeveloped within Tranche 1. This is to ensure students in that cohort and each subsequent cohort are not disadvantaged relative to each other by their respective subject choices. This commitment was outlined in the Senior Cycle Redevelopment Implementation Support Measures document published in May 2025 and further outlined in an Information Note to schools in August 2025.
These extended arrangements, as set out in the recently published departmental circular 0002/2026 ‘Bonus for the completion of additional assessment components through Irish’, will apply to all Leaving Certificate Established and Leaving Certificate Applied subjects in 2027 and in subsequent years.
The SEC has also recently published circular S10/26 ‘Application of the Irish Bonus in State Examinations’, outlining the operational dimensions of the policy change including the applicable criteria and parameters relating to the awarding of the bonus marks.
The application of this policy must acknowledge that the Leaving Certificate Established and Leaving Certificate Applied are both two-year programmes. The introduction of significant changes to the Irish bonus marks policy, mid-way through students’ final year as they are preparing for their examinations in June, would raise significant issues in relation to fairness and equity. In addition, in practical terms, it must also be acknowledged that the submission dates for coursework in a number of subjects in respect of Leaving Certificate 2026 have already passed.
The extension of the Irish bonus marks acknowledges the value of the components concerned, their intended integration into the teaching and learning experienced by students, and builds on the established objective of encouraging the use of the Irish language by all learners, in all schools.
The extension also recognises that, with the introduction of the Tranche 1 subject specifications, a number of subjects which previously were examined by written examination only will have coursework components with a significant weighting. In these circumstances it is considered appropriate to include coursework components completed in Irish for the first time. To not do so would significantly reduce the efficacy of the current Irish bonus marks policy in those subjects.
The introduction of the extension outlined in circular 0002/2026 applies to students taking their Leaving Certificate examinations in 2027 and beyond. It does not apply to earlier cohorts, including 2026, as those annual cohorts will not engage with additional components under Senior Cycle Redevelopment in the same way as those in 2027 will do so.
My department has a long-standing policy of encouraging the active use of the Irish language by students and in school communities. The extension of the Irish bonus marks builds on this objective, encouraging the use of the Irish language by all learners, in all schools. The application of the Irish Bonus will be reviewed as subjects are redeveloped under the redevelopment programme.
