Transition Year provides a bridge between Junior Cycle and Leaving Certificate. It offers a broad educational experience which aims to provide young people with the skills and support necessary to develop their own individual talents, aptitudes and abilities with regard to future educational and/or vocational preparation.
In Calasanctius College, our programme provides a combination of core academic subjects, a sampling of our senior cycle options and tailored modules which offer students opportunities to avail of a variety of experiences outside of the 'normal' school curriculum. These new environments provide students with opportunities to discover their own individual talents, aptitudes and abilities.
The main features of our programme include a combination of:
- Work Experience
- Field Trips
- Community Service
- Modules in a variety of Leaving Certificate subjects
- Cultural & Social Studies
- Life Skills Modules
- Gaisce
- GAA Leaders
- School Musical
- Use of Active Teaching / Learning Methodologies
- Enterprise Education (Mini-Companies)
- Languages – culture & context
- Visiting Speakers
- Technology
- Environmental Studies
Work Experience
Our aim is to prepare each student for their role as an independent and responsible member of society. An integral part to achieving this is our Work Experience module where Wednesdays are scheduled on the timetable for student work experience. Students engage in three different career orientated work experiences throughout the school year. They are visited/contacted regularly by the work experience co-ordinator. On returning to the classroom, students are given sufficient time and opportunity in careers class to debrief, report back and evaluate their experience. We would like to pay special tribute to our local community; both employers and community groups, which are an integral part of the success of our programme each year. They afford us a wealth of invaluable recources and experiential opportunities throughout the year and we continue to be indebted to their generosity and the positivity with which they participate and support our school.
Budget and Costs
Each year, Transition Year is funded through DES grants, parents’ contributions (in addition to SSF), and school fundraisers. At all times we strive to provide varied, exciting, diverse and atypical experiences for the TY group. However, as we are all aware these experiences and in particular the transport (buses) necessary to provide them are expensive. All funds are managed tightly in an attempt to get best value for money but we would like to highlight that where a student is absent the costs still have to be covered for the booking and the bus. Some activities are mandatory and have been factored into the budget from the outset while other activities may be included during the year as optional additional extras. We will try to limit these and provide as much notice as possible for budgetting purposes. It is worth noting that optional activities/trips are entirely at each student's discretion as to whether they participate or not. Therefore, we strongly advise that each student embraces the year as students get out of Transition Year what they put in. Absenteeism should be kept to a minimum and students should ensure they are fully engaged and involved to benefit from the many new experiences that make up our Transition Year.
Assessment
It is worth noting that this programme and it's structure is not suitable for everyone. There is a high level of self-directed learning and personal responsibility in the context of co- and cross-curricular interaction and this should be taken into account when considering application to the programme. Students sit formal assessments throughout the year and are also assessed at a practical, observational and participation level on an ongoing basis throughout the year. At the end of the year students submit their own personal individual portfolios for final grading. School based certification is issued based on a variety of factors where students are awarded as follows:
- Distinction (> 85%)
- Merit (> 70%)
- Commendation (> 55%)
- Pass (> 40%)
Finally, at the end of each year the programme is evaluated with an input from TY students, staff and parents. On foot of this staff revise the programme in light of the Transition Year Guidelines, Resource Materials published by the Department of Education and Skills and school resources. Student and parent feedback will also be sought as part of this annual review process.