Over 200 Catholic schools heads call for transfer test to be scrapped for a year

A group of more than 200 Catholic school principals have signed an open letter calling for transfer tests to be abandoned for at least one year.

Writing in the Irish News, the Catholic Principals’ Association called for the action due to the Coronavirus crisis.

They cited “the inevitable emotional distress of primary school children during this pandemic” and the break in education.

The principals have also asked all grammar schools to suspend the tests.

So far, 11 Catholic grammar schools – including St Columb’s and Thornhill Colleges in Derry – and the integrated school, Lagan College, have confirmed that they will not use the test results to admit pupils in 2021.

Unofficial transfer tests have been used by schools since the abolition of the 11-plus in 2008.

They are run by private test providers Association for Quality Education (AQE) and the Post-Primary Transfer Consortium (PPTC), which runs the GL Assessment.

The GL Assessment is used by Catholic grammars.

Kieran O’Neill, chair of the Catholic Principals Association, told the BBC that he wanted other grammar schools to follow their lead.

“The grammar schools that have already made the decision to suspend the use for this year have led the way,” he said.

“And whilst that is to be commended, there are still a number of Catholic grammars and indeed other grammars across the province, that haven’t done so.

“So we felt that it was necessary at this stage to continue to apply that pressure on the grammar schools.”

His organisation, which wants a complete end to academic selection, is also calling for the tests to be cancelled in future years due to the impact of the coronavirus.

“The current Year 5 children have just had four months out of school,” said Mr O’Neill.

“Next year, following the formula suggested by Education Minister Peter Weir, they may have two days in school and two days off school and, depending how long this continues, they will receive 50% of their education for their whole P6 year.”

Last month, Archbishop Eamon Martin, the head of the Catholic Church in Ireland, called for Catholic grammar schools to suspend academic selection in 2020.

But Mr Weir rejected that call. He said there was no “viable alternative” to put in the place of the transfer test.

If the exams do not go ahead, the schools would be required to use different criteria to select pupils.

In its letter, the Catholic Principals’ Association urged Mr Weir to intervene.

The letter calls for the exams to be cancelled due to “the inevitable emotional distress of primary school children during this pandemic” and the extended break from education.

It notes that by the end of this month, Year 6 children will have missed out on four months of school and face-to-face teaching.

“These tensions and anxieties will be very significantly compounded by the well-attested stresses and strains of transfer tests,” it reads.

It also notes that students returning for their final year of school before moving to secondary school will have “significantly less face-to-face teaching”.

The letter adds that the two-week delay on testing going ahead would not make up for what would amount to nine months of disruption to children’s education.

The Association for Quality Education (AQE) said its testing would be “reviewed” amid the coronavirus pandemic, but that transfer tests were fairer for pupils than “selection by parental wealth”.

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