IT was morning of celebration for many teenagers across West Belfast on Tuesday as sixth form students received their AS and A-level results after an educational rollercoaster courtesy of the Covid pandemic.
For the second year in a row, formal exams were cancelled with grades being based on evidence gathered by teachers.
Last year more than a third of grades calculated by teachers were lowered by the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) exam board, leading to a u-turn by then Education Minister, Peter Weir who decided that grades originally given by teachers should be awarded.
This year grades have also been based on teacher predictions, however CCEA have collected samples of evidence from the schools in an attempt to provide a fairer system of assessment.
Carol McCann, Principal of St Dominic’s Grammar School on the Falls Road, said that their results have once again been “outstanding”, with 98.5 per cent of pupils achieving grades A* to C in three subjects at A Level.
“At A-level, 69 per cent of grades achieved were A* or A and 92 per cent were A* to B. This follows on from the stunning results which this same cohort achieved at both GCSE and AS level.
“11 students achieved four A or A* grades at A-level and 66 students achieved at least three A or A* grades. At AS level, the girls achieved outstanding results also with an impressive 63 achieving A grades only. 27 students achieved four A grades and one student achieved a whopping 5 A grades.”
Mrs McCann said students had endured much disappointment due to the pandemic.
“They endured two periods of lockdown, firstly in spring 2020 and then again in January 2021. In addition to this, a number of them suffered from covid or were close contacts of those who caught the virus.
“Instead of relishing a day at home, they begged not to have to go home on occasions when they were a named contact. Unfortunately, this year it was the staff who were having to send the students home – an unprecedented situation!
“Numerous celebrations were cancelled but despite this, they kept smiling and their spirits remained high. As a staff, we greatly appreciated the students’ positive attitude and the fact that they dealt so very well with all the challenges they had to endure.
“They showed resilience, courage and great strength of character and just got on with it. Hard work always pays off in the end and that was very much the case this year. The pupils’ great achievements at GCSE and AS level and all the hard work throughout their A-level year has paid off.”
Across the North, the percentage of students receiving the highest grades continued to increase, with 50.8 per cent of A Level entries awarded the highest grades of A* or A, a 7.5 percentage point increase on previous outcomes. The percentage of students achieving grades A* to E was similar to 2020: with over 99 per cent of students being awarded these grades.
Congratulating the students, Education Minister, Michelle McIlveen said: “I wish to congratulate all the young people who have received their A Level results today. These outcomes reflect the assessments made by the people who know you best, your teachers."
