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EDUCATION PROFILE:FOUR years ago, when then education minister Mary Hanafin dismissed a proposed overhaul of the Leaving Cert as a “Rolls Royce option”, many wondered if the department and the curriculum review body were on the same page. The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) and its chief executive, Anne Looney, seemed at odds with the establishment in general and the minister in particular, writes LOUISE HOLDEN

“This review was not born yesterday,” says a source. “The process of reforming the Junior Certificate has been in train for many years – since before the recession. Senior figures in the department have been pushing for it.”