Up to schools to find exam venue for expelled pupils

LEAVING CERTIFICATE students who have been expelled from school would “usually” be found an alternative venue in which to sit the exam by the expelling school, according to the Department of Education.

A spokeswoman for the department said in circumstances where a student was told by their school that they could not sit their State exam there, “it would be usual for the school themselves to look for alternative arrangements” for the student.

She was commenting as about 100 parents of students at the fee-paying High School in Rathgar, Dublin, met yesterday to consider their response to the early termination of the Leaving Cert students’ academic year over an end-of-term incident.

Three students were expelled and have been informed they must now find an alternative exam centre over the incident.

The parents were told on Friday, by text, that their children were not to return to the school without an appointment.

The ending of the academic year several days early came on foot of a dance organised by the students in the sixth-year common room, during which the door to the room was padlocked from the inside by the students. There was also said to have been some “slagging” of teachers on Facebook.

A notice posted on the High School website on Friday refers to “online privacy and code of conduct” and says: “Circulating or publishing (including on the internet) material recorded without consent, with the purpose of humiliating, undermining the reputation of or causing damage to another person, whether considered a ‘joke’ or not, may be considered as a serious breach of discipline and . . . could result in suspension or expulsion from school.”

The sixth-year students were due to complete their time at the High School on Wednesday with a graduation ceremony. The ceremony has been cancelled.

The Leaving Certificate exam starts in 16 days – on June 6th.

At yesterday’s meeting, parents expressed anger at the perceived heavy-handedness of the school authorities, and concern at the impact of events on the students about to sit important exams.

Though the Department of Education does not run the State exams – a function performed by the State Examinations Commission – the spokeswoman said it was the expelling school which would make alternative arrangements for their former pupils.

“They have the contacts with the other schools, and no school would actually want to stand in the way of one of their students completing their studies.”

School management could not be contacted for comment yesterday.

Meanwhile, gardaí are investigating an incident allegedly involving a student from St Mary’s College in Rathmines who was tied up as part of an end-of-year prank.

The incident occurred last Wednesday night when the student was found tied to a tree in the grounds of Muckross Park School in nearby Ranelagh.

A Garda spokesman confirmed the incident was being investigated. He said no arrests had been made and denied a media report that the Garda helicopter had been involved in a search for the student last Wednesday.