What is Transition Year?
Transition Year is a one year programme taken after the Junior Certificate and before the Leaving Certificate programme.
What is its purpose?
The purpose of TY is to promote maturity in students.
To help students become more independent and responsible individuals through the variety of subjects they sample throughout the programme and activities they partake in during the year.
TY should assist each student develop himself or herself as a person.
TY aims to help young people prepare for adult life especially through contact with workplaces and career interests.
Transition Year will help develop study skills that will enhance their performance in leaving certificate exams.
TY gives students the opportunity to...
Become a more independent learner
Develop more confidence
Work as part of a team
Learn about the working world and add valuable experience to your CV through work experience
Go on school exchange to France
Sample and discover new subjects to make more informed choices for the Leaving Certificate.
Become more motivated for the Leaving Certificate
Discover interests and skills that you may have an aptitude for
Improve your computer skills
Develop a more mature relationship with your teachers
Visit Third Level colleges and workplaces
Practice meeting deadlines for assessments
Learn about leadership, co operating and dealing with conflict
Undertake projects on topics that interest you
What subjects are studied?
Core Subjects: Irish, English, Maths, French or German, Religion, Physical Education, Health Education, I.C.T., Young Social Innovators, Public Speaking, Chemistry, Ag. Science, Biology, Young Scientist
Option Subjects: Spanish, Chinese, Cultural Studies, Art, Home Economics, Food Science, Friends for Life, Music, Enterprise, Metalwork, Woodwork, Community Care
Work Experience: While work experience is a mandatory part of transition year many find it is possibly the most beneficial and rewarding of the TY experiences. It serves to guide and inform students as they enter into the Senior Cycle and in the process of selecting subjects and eventually college courses.
Assessment in Transition Year
Our TY students are assessed using our new Credits system. This system endeavours to reward our students for not only their academic ability in exams but also their participation in class, project work, social work, group work and work experience. Students will at years end be awarded a Pass, Merit or Distinction grade for their TY year.
Why TY?
An ERSI study has established that students who had undertaken TY had a higher Grade Point Average in the Leaving Certificate as well as increased entry level to higher education. Students were also found to take a broader range of courses at third level than non TY Students.
Approach Required
What a student gets out of TY depends hugely on the attitude he or she takes to it in the first place. An open minded, motivated individual with the courage to grasp the opportunities afforded to them will gain most from the year. What you get out of TY is heavily dependent on what you are prepared to put into it.