Pre-examination

Presentation: Since the examination papers can be brought home to parents, examinations will be typed where possible. If not typed, they must be legible, clearly laid out, with correct spelling.
Content: Care with words that are used on papers for younger students – prior explanations to first years re exams/re questions/re sample answers – and care that the examination will take long enough to answer.
Common papers Where the examination will be used to decide on class composition (e.g. higher/ordinary maths) then common material and common papers must be agreed well in advance by the staff involved.
Cut-off date: Exams to be presented to Deputy Principal by due date which will be a single date announced three weeks ahead of the examinations.

Examination procedures

1. Supervision will take place as per supervision timetable which is drawn up by Deputy Principal.
2. The Deputy Principal, together with the Dean of each year, are responsible for all matters pertaining to the examinations for any given year.
3. Staff who are on supervision at the start of any examination are asked to be there a few minutes early to help with the administration of the papers.
4. Supervising staff circulate throughout the examination hall to ensure that the exams are conducted in silence and without any instances of copying.
5. Student regulations:

• Students (from 1st to 6th) must be in full uniform for the exams. The Deputy Principal will deal with students who do not fulfill this requirement.
• Students who arrive late must report to the Deputy Principal who will decide whether the student may be permitted into the examination room.
• Students are not to be permitted to leave the examination room during the examinations for any reason other than serious illness during the first hour. Afterwards, individual students may be permitted to go to the toilet at the discretion of the senior supervisor present.
• Students shall complete the examinations on A4 paper.
• No students will be allowed to permanently leave the examination for one hour 30 minutes after the examination has begun. Students who complete their papers after the first one and a half hours will only be permitted to leave in 15 minute intervals.
• Students who disrupt the examinations may be precluded from sitting some or all of their remaining examinations.

Post–examination

1. The Reports will be available from the start of the examinations in the staff-room.
2. The Reports will be completed by hand by individual teachers, then by the Dean, finally signed by Principal.
3. The percentage mark for each subject will be entered by each teacher on the report. The mark will be entered at the highest level available (e.g. in a class where it has not yet been decided that the student is taking ordinary level, then the mark will be entered in the higher level column – this is important for the ordering of students in each year group). Grades will only be used on the Transition Year assessment.
4. A comment on each student will be entered by the subject teacher. Such comments should be (a) legible (b) formal (c) properly spelt (d) contain some positive element to motivate and encourage
5. The Reports are to be completed by the date specified and sent by post to the parents’ addresses.
6. The summary spreadsheets outlining the results in each subject for each year-group will be available within one week of the results completion date.
7. The top five students (based on the results of the Christmas exams) in each year-group will receive a prize for excellence. Prizes will also be provided at the summer for effort and progress.
8. Staff are encouraged to return examination parents to all students but particularly to students taking State exams.

Christmas examinations

These will continue to be organised for the last week of term leading to the Christmas holidays with the results to be completed within 4 days of the start of the new term.

Mock exams

1. The written examinations are organised for the first week of March with the results to be completed 12 days after the final written exam.
2. In order to accommodate oral examinations at Leaving Cert level, the exams will be scheduled over two weeks.
3. The use of outside papers (paid for by the school) is the norm for these examinations.
4. Some staff also have the papers marked by outside agencies at a cost to the students while other staff mark their own papers.

Summer exams

These will continue to be organised for the last week of term leading to the summer holidays with the results to be completed 12 days after the final exam.

State exams

The state examinations at Junior and Leaving Certificate take place at the College in June each year.

Ms Norah Martyn is the Examination Aide who co-ordinates the organisation of these examinations with the outside examiners from the State Examinations Commission.
The results of the Leaving Certificate are circulated to all students in mid-August while the Junior Certificate examination results are circulated to all students in mid-September.
Eighty-six students sat the 2004 Leaving certificate examination. Nineteen (22%) achieved 350 points or more, with six students (7%) failing to achieve five passes in the examination.
Mr Robert Cronin organises the viewing of the Leaving Certificate scripts which takes place at the end of August.